Lost Beneath the Moonless Sky
by anangelsangel
Summary: This is my take on Christine's life from the night beneath the moonless sky and on. THIS IS BASED UPON THE AUSTRALIAN PERFORMANCE OF LOVE NEVER DIES WRITTEN BY ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER. PERFORMED BY ANNA O'BYRNE AND BEN LEWIS. I OWN NOTHING! !
1. Beneath a Moonless Sky

This story is based upon the work of the lovely Andrew Lloyd Webber I own Nothing!

I knew that there was no way I could go through with it. It had been months since the fire had burnt down my home at the opera house. I knew who had started it and what had led him to do so. Me. He was a dark and troubled soul, and yet I couldn't stop from yearning for him, to hear the smooth seductive roar of his voice, to feel the luring, passionate sensation of his hands as they grazed my skin. I needed him. My love for him grew stronger and the fear and dread grew more powerful with each passing day. I had only a day left until I was to be married to my childhood sweetheart Raoul. I had loved him for so long and yet since my decision in the catacombs of the opera house I found myself wanting so much more than a simple and safe love. I wanted passion and devotion. I wanted to surrender to the darkness and abandon all light. I wanted to hold Erik in my arms until he felt safe once more, until he felt the love he had so been denied since birth. I needed to see him and yet I knew I couldn't.

On that catastrophic night the opera house had been sent a light a mob had gone after my beloved and God only knows what could have happened. I had nothing left of such a passionate man. Nothing. And maybe that was why I know found myself wondering down the corridors of the old, dusty, partial burnt opera house. There were cob webs everywhere and the sun was going down giving everything an eerie light to it. The mood of the entire building was frightening, yet welcoming at the same time. It felt as though it was an invitation to the darkness, to my lost love. I found the old dressing room I had used the night I had performed _Don Juan Triumphant_. I felt the harsh wood of the door and the smoothness of the doorknob as I twisted it. The room was dim lit by only the last remaining rays of the setting sun. I found the corpse of an old rose with a black satin ribbon tied around its neck, lying upon my old dressing table. My fingers caressed the softness and I could feel the warm tears slide down my cheeks and slip down my neck.

The air was cold and everything was still. But I didn't feel alone. Maybe it was just the atmosphere of the memories clouding the space surrounding me. I was never alone when I had been here. A phantom always lurked in the corners. A phantom, my phantom, my angel, my Erik. I fell to my knees letting the rose drop. I felt for the full length mirror upon the wall as the darkness of a moonless night engulfed me. I felt the mirror slide with a slow, smooth movement. One single candelabra sat in the tunnel lit, as if waiting for my return. It was almost as if someone was waiting for me to come and tell them my good-byes or to run back into their arms. Or it could have been a simple memorial for my love left by Madame Giry or Meg.

I stumbled my way through the tunnels until I came to his lair. His thousands of candles were lit and his sheets of music cluttered the floor. They were not finished as I had remembered them to be. They were either balled up or had lines of his music scratched out. Ink spills covered the pages. Quills broken in frustration surrounded his delicate ivory keys. His beautiful mask rested on top of his piano. I picked it up in my hands and felt my memories of him steal my breath away. This place had more meaning to me than anywhere else in my past. And now it seemed to hold more life. I rounded the corner to Erik's study. It was where I had slept in his grand bed the night I had first visited him in his domain. It was also where I had left him the day I made my choice. But I had only been a kid then and didn't know what love was. But know I knew the definition of love.

Love was Erik. It was his melodies and harmonies that floated in the air and stuck to my soul. It was the passion and devotion that crowded his heart. It was his burning need for affection that resided in his eyes. And it was the tenderness and joy I could feel every time he touched me. As I entered the room I almost fainted. For seated on his bed holding his lovely music box so close to his chest was my Erik. I could hear him sobbing but I could not see his face because it was angled away from me. I knew that he wasn't wearing his mask because it was still in my hands and my fingers grazed where it had once touched his lips. I stumbled forward. He heard me and with a sudden jerk he turned towards me. But before I could see his face a sudden gust of cold night air ran through the room and up my spine putting out every candle putting us in complete darkness.

"Christine? Can it be? The one that leave me so serene, the one that ripped me apart and could be so mean? Oh, Christine. Why?" I could feel his music in my ears and it made me tremble at the feeling of being so close. I could feel his warm breath against my cheek. And I reached out to touch him and to find nothing.

"Oh Erik. My love. The one I chose to leave. How could I ever deceive…" I stumbled forward towards the bed and found his shoulder.

"Christine…" I could hear his pain and the shyness in his voice the moment I touched him. But after a moment he relaxed and I felt him open himself up to me. He stopped trying to turn and hide from me and leaned into my touch. He was still hurt yet he engulfed with the love that radiated out of his every word. I pulled him up into my arms. And I held him so close to me that I could feel the music in his pulse. I touched his scared face and felt him on a deeper level than I had ever felt. It was beautiful. He was beautiful. It was so easy to be around him and feel his love close around me in an embrace. His beauty underneath was that of a god of not only music but pureness, love, and perfection. I knew him as though he was part of me. Our souls and futures were entwined.

"I love you Erik. You are so beautiful, so very beautiful, almost too beautiful." I sang into his ear. My lips grazed his skin and I filled with a need too urgent to deny. And he kissed me as I caressed him. It was then that the world around us fell away. No thoughts of the past or the future. No thoughts of any wedding or of Raoul. It was only us and our love, only the present.

"My Christine." His words made me melt into his arms and he held me. I kissed him with all the passion in my body. But even with all the strength in my body I couldn't even manage to show him half of the power and passion I could feel coursing through my body. And it was then that he knew what I was offering him. He picked me up in his arms and laid me on his bed. He took me and I begged him to. Again and again, there beneath the moonless sky. It was beautiful and I knew that I would be his forever. We fit together so perfectly, so effortlessly. His arms wrapped around me with such ease and it was so comforting. It was proof that we were made for one another. We were each other's first and it was then that I knew we were going to be each other's last. I loved him so much and I fell asleep in his arms knowing that in the morning when I would wake to see his face I would no longer see the disfigurement and feel horror. I would find the beauty underneath and feel a passionate devotion to this creature, this angel of the music of the night. And I would confess my love for him and see relief and joy flood into his face as he would grab me and pull me into him…

But that's not what happened.

I woke with joy thinking his arms would be around me, keeping me safe, wrapping me in a love that poor Raoul would never know or ever have for me in any life time. But instead the room was cold and empty. The first light of dawn shone through the invisible windows and reflected off of his marvelous mirrors. I wrapped myself in his sheets and went to his piano hoping to find him writing like a ferocious genius who had been reunited with his muse.

"Erik my love where are you?" The realization came crashing down on me, pushing the air out of my lungs. The horrible realization that the loneliness I felt was because Erik was nowhere to be found. He left me all alone in his dark dungeon of fear and doubt. "Erik my love how dare…you…" I fell to the floor and poured tears into my hands. Tears of lost love and loneliness, tears of anger and betrayal, tears of the lost hope and of denial. I gathered myself together and walked back to his room to grab my clothes. There on the pillow I had rested my head upon moments before, sat a single red rose with a black satin ribbon tied around its stem. A moonless sky, a new moon it should have symbolized a new start. What a pathetic fool for thinking this new start was going to be with Erik. I trudged back to my hotel to get ready for my wedding leaving behind the rose and the memory of my beautiful Erik.


	2. The Wedding of the Damned

By the time I returned to the hotel I was lost and confused and in a daze. The dress Raoul had bought me felt too itchy and tight. I felt as though I was suffocating falling below the surface and drowning, drifting away into a lagoon of the lost. How could he have left me? How could he just forget me and use me and leave me? I poured out my soul to him I gave him everything because he was my everything. Suddenly there was a quick rough knock at my door. I quickly wiped away my harsh selfish tears as the door swung open. Raoul was standing in my doorway looking so very handsome. I looked at him carefully. I could love him. He was handsome and had a bright future. He was rich and he could take care of me. But he wasn't what I wanted. Raoul didn't know what real love was. He thought he did but love to him was beauty, an external attraction. There wasn't a deep connection or an alluring song that would always bring him back to his love. He was a man of superficial needs. A man I could easily love as a dear and precious childhood friend, but never anything more.

"Good morning my love. Such a beautiful day for a wedding." He said to me as he pulled me into a tight hug and kiss. His lips were rough and his hands were strong and forceful. Whereas, Erik last night has been soft and gentle yet so unbearably aggressive in a way that could only make you swoon deeper into his arms. His lips, although scarred, had been gentle and sweet as they desperately found my shoulders and hands. His fingers were those of a musician. He knew where to grab around my waist and he did it with just enough force to make me want more but with such gentleness as though he didn't want to break me. Raoul's voice was much more in the tenor range were as Erik's was a low seductive bass. Erik's words were also carefully chosen and those of a poet's. STOP! I will not think of Erik! He left me alone. He broke my heart! I will do what a good woman should do. Just love. Just live. Just give what I can give and take what little I deserve.

"What's the matter Christine? Aren't you ready to get married?" I looked up into Raoul's sad and troubled eyes. He looked scared, afraid I was having doubts.

"Of course I am. I'm just worried about you being in here. It is not proper and it will give our marriage bad luck!" I looked away before he could see the lie in my eyes. I could feel him shrug his shoulders.

"Well I couldn't wait for tonight." Of course. How could I forge_t?_ The ring he gave me was starting to weigh down on finger and my heart. This wasn't what I wanted my life to be like. I wanted love and romance. I wanted to grow old with the man I loved. How could I do that if we grew to be to very different people? He was used to getting used to what he wanted and for no work. I found him to be growing more needy and annoying as the days passed. He was turning into a little spoiled child that had to have his way.

I filled with more doubt as each second was ticked away by the menacing hands of the grandfather clock in the room. How could I follow through with a marriage I wasn't invested in? Just love. Just live. Just give what you can give and take what little you deserve_ ._I ducked out of his grip and showed him out of my room claiming to need time to get ready. And what of tonight? What would he say when he realized I was no longer a maid? What would I say? Could I even have a honeymoon with a man I didn't love? Give what I can give and take what little I deserve…

I went through the motions of the wedding yet felt nothing. I was becoming an empty shell of myself. Raoul was enjoying himself so more than usual and drinking more than usual. By the end of the night he was a drunken slob.

"Comeheremybeautifulwife." He whispered into my ear. He smelled intensely of Whiskey and his words all slurred together. He was becoming nauseating. He picked me up in his arms and stumbled his way to the car to take us to the hotel he chose for our honeymoon. The room was average there wasn't a sign of romance. He threw me on the bed. And had his way with me. I couldn't fight back he was my husband so I let my mind slip off into another place. Just love. Just live. Just gave what I could give and take what little I deserved. His hands were clammy and his breath revolting. His kisses were slobbery and forceful and rough. It was the worst experience I had ever had. I drifted into a land where I woke in the arms of my beloved Erik.

His eyes were warm and apologetic. He cared about me and wondered if he had hurt me at all the night before. He was careful not to force anything onto me such as his emotions, in case I was to reject him. But in my mind I sank into his grasp and the warmth of his love and held him. I fell asleep eventually and entered this world as a dream. In my dream things such as phantoms and Raouls never existed. There was only a beautiful man who had once been haunted by a troubled past. His only scars were emotional. He was a wounded creature of light at last and he accepted my love and never shunned me. His hands were always interlocked with mine. His lips always seemed to find mine.

And again I woke up to an empty bed. Raoul woke up early and headed down to the bar leaving nothing but a short one worded note behind. I quickly dressed and left the hotel looking to go find my lovely Meg, whom I hadn't seen since the night of the fire.

I walked up the stairs to her home and knocked on the door. Her housekeeper answered and informed me that Meg Giry had left town last night with her mother and that they decided to move. Lost and confused with no one to talk to I found myself wondering back to the Opera Populaire. I wandered down the corridors and stumbled into the chapel. I found my father's candle and lit it saying a little prayer for his guidance. I sat there and cried for over an hour. I heard a man's voice and my head shot up.

"Erik? Angel?" I stood up and rushed out of the chapel. To my disappointment it was only the construction workers coming to plan out their restoration of the opera house. I slowly walked out of the opera house making sure not to look at box number five. I was dreading going back to the hotel and seeing Raoul but it was getting dark. Without my Angel of music to watch over me everything seemed to be more menacing. By the time I entered the hotel suite Raoul was passed out drunk on the bed fully clothed. I silently changed into a nightgown and slipped under the covers beside his unconscious body.

I was walking around in circles and the room was spinning around me. I was looking for someone. People in weird costumes swirled past me. I was getting so dizzy. Suddenly there was a loud bang and I fell and kept falling down a tunnel of darkness reaching out to touch someone, but not just anyone. The spinning stopped along with my falling and a hand reached out pulling me from the darkness. My vision was blocked out and all I could see was light. I was an overabundance of light and it hurt my eyes. But I heard to distinct voices. One of which was strange and childlike. The other belonged to my beautiful Erik. I woke up covered in sweat and was hushed to go back to sleep by my drunk husband, Raoul.


	3. The Charmed Life of Viscountess

When I woke Raoul was sober and packing our things to go back to our new home. Well it was only my new home. It had been the home that Raoul had grown up in and had inherited when his parents died earlier that year. I sat up in bed and he didn't seem to notice my existence as he kept packing up his things. I got out of bed to take a bath. When I finished I walked out of the bathroom expecting Raoul to be down at the bar. But he was sitting on the bed staring at me.

"So where were you yesterday?" His words were harsh and accusing. He had an empty glass in his hand and the smell of alcohol radiated from his words.

"I went to visit Meg. She wasn't at our wedding and I wanted to see her." He accepted my excuse half-heartedly. He got off the bed and grabbed our bags and left the room, making sure to leave the door to slam shut. I stood in the room lonely and a little dazed. My life was starting so quickly. I wanted nothing more than to just go back to the opera house and sink into my bed there and watch time roll backwards to the days when it was only my angel and me. I wiped the single tear that snuck out of my eye and slipped out of the room down to the carriage waiting for me. Raoul refused to make eye contact with me the entire trip. It was then I finally decided Erik would be nothing to me but a distant phantom of a memory and that my future I would devote to my new husband and his happiness.

We got to the house and Raoul helped me out of the carriage. I kissed him delicately on the cheek and felt all of his bitterness drain away. He must have sensed my distance the past two days. He wrapped his arm around me and pulled me into him. I could love him and make him happy I could. Just love. Just Live. Just give what I could live and take what little I deserved. We walked up the front steps into our new home. But it was no home it was a mansion. The front door had an archway with sculptures in the brick as magnificent as the Opera Populaire. He led me through the house to our bedroom. I unpacked all of the belongings I brought from my small apartment near the opera house. He placed them around our room in a way that pleased him. The room made me feel small and out of place. It felt as though it was his room and he was only making space for me instead of making it our place.

At dinner that night we sat at opposite ends of the large table. The entire house felt so empty and deserted. It was a big difference from the overcrowded, chaotic opera house. He left me after dinner so he could go out gambling. I quickly made friends with the house servants. I was afraid I would suffocate in the loneliness that crowded the atmosphere of the house. It was too grand and large for people to live in. I should have been a museum, a place only to go to look. I thought homes were meant to be small and full of love and weddings to be small and full of those that loved you and it was meant to be sincere and full of tears of joy. I had a feeling that this life wasn't going to be like that at all. I quickly changed into a night gown and sat in the bathroom brushing my hair quietly singing to myself.

I missed singing so much. Singing had once been a thing that represented freedom and filled me with joy and brought up my spirits. I hadn't sung since the night of _Don Juan Triumphant_. I looked into the mirror as I finished the sung I was singing almost hoping to see his face. NO! He was to only be the phantom of the opera. He would be nothing more than that to me. He would no longer have my love or a name. He would no longer have a face just a dark silhouette that passed through the shadows. I walked to the bedroom shaking his memory out of my head. I slipped under the covers and quickly fell asleep.

I was walking around in circles and the room was spinning around me. I was looking for someone. People in weird costumes swirled past me. I was getting so dizzy. Suddenly there was a loud bang and I fell and kept falling down a tunnel of darkness reaching out to touch someone, but not just anyone. The spinning stopped along with my falling and a hand reached out pulling me from the darkness. My vision was blocked out and all I could see was light. I was an overabundance of light and it hurt my eyes. But I heard two distinct voices.


	4. Need for Closure

The weeks since my wedding day were usually spent alone while Raoul was out. When he was home he tried to shower me with gifts. But that wasn't what I needed. I needed presence and love, devotion. I needed solid arms around me to keep me safe and make me feel needed and wanted. It had been four weeks since the wedding and I could feel that something about me was off. I woke one day with the feeling of bile rising in my throat. I ran to the bathroom and threw up in the toilet. Seconds later I felt perfectly fine. Raoul came in and kissed my forehead and left to go out drinking with his friends. I walked slowly to the kitchen suddenly feeling as though I hadn't eaten in weeks. I opened every cupboard to find nothing appetizing. I finally found the most random things to crave my appetite.

After stuffing my face with everything from spinach to pickles I felt a wave of nausea and ran to the bathroom throwing up everything I had just ate. I felt so sick I went back to the bedroom and fell fast asleep. I woke at noon the next day. Raoul had already left to go gambling. I felt fine until I sat up and felt a sharp sting in my stomach and pitch forward and threw up on the floor. Once I felt better I sat on the floor and scrubbed off the vomit before Raoul could see it and get angry.

Once my work was down I got up and put the rags in the wash room. I went back to the bedroom and dressed for the day. I left to go to the opera house once more. Erik's face wouldn't leave my mind. I had to see if he was still there. I needed to see my angel and get closure. The air was too warm and humid. My hairs stuck to the back of my neck. The walk was long and tiresome. I never used to get so winded and tired after such a short walk. I walked up the stairs of the opera house and through the doors. The workers must have been on break because all of their work was abandoned. I walked around all of the various tools and slipped behind the door of the old dressing room. I walked down through the dark tunnels. When I reached the water the boat wasn't in place so I waded through the thigh high water. I was warm and murky. It was calming.

When I reached his lair I found myself running to his piano. Finding it empty I walked into his bedroom. It was also empty. Feeling defeated I plopped unto his bed and soon found myself in a spinning room. I was looking for someone. People in weird costumes swirled past me. I was getting so dizzy. Suddenly there was a loud bang and I fell and kept falling down a tunnel of darkness reaching out to touch someone, but not just anyone. The spinning stopped along with my falling and a hand reached out pulling me from the darkness. My vision was blocked out and all I could see was light. I was an overabundance of light and it hurt my eyes. But I heard two distinct voices. I woke with a jolt. His sheets smelled of dust his presence and smell no longer lingered on them. I felt the feeling of nausea I had come so accustomed to over the past days. I ran to the water and felt my body heave as I vomited into the water. I felt chills go up my spine as I realized what I had just done.

I had just ruined his perfect little hide away. His home and his domain all ruined by me. I seemed to be ruining everything this day. What was wrong with me these days? I felt a sudden fear as the theory grew stronger within me. How long had it been since I had last had my period. Two weeks before the wedding. But with my current sleeping patterns I had only had sex once. With him. That couldn't be. It couldn't! And yet…


	5. The Phantom Child

I couldn't be pregnant! I was only seventeen! Of all times to be pregnant why would it be the moment where I could feel my life ripped in half. I could feel the frayed edges of my soul tearing from my body. I wasn't whole anymore and I wasn't myself. I couldn't raise a child. I most certainly couldn't raise a child with Raoul always missing. Oh Raoul. How was I going to explain my pregnancy to him when we never made love? He would know I cheated. And this poor child's father, what about him? I would never see him again. He left me with a child all alone to face the world. This child would never know his father. He would never feel Erik's love and adoration. But I would love this child for both of us. If I was even pregnant. I was getting too ahead of myself. What if I got food poisoning from my feast the other day?

The decision was made and I was on my way to the home of a good nurse. The day was bright and sunny yet all I could feel was the dread of what I would hear from this woman. I walked up her front steps leading to her home. Flowers covered her small front yard. Her house was small and white with black shudders. I knocked on the door and a seventy-five year old woman opened the door. She was a tiny frail woman. Her wrinkles were very deeply set in her face and her hair was white. She showed me into her little office. After checking me over and hearing my symptoms. She informed me that I was indeed pregnant. I have no idea what came over me because I leaned into my palms and cried the deepest sobs I had ever before. I didn't know how to raise a child. I was only a child myself. I couldn't bring a baby into this world with a disappearing father that left this child to be cared for by a man like Raoul. The older woman wrapped me in a tight embrace and rocked me back and forth comforting me with whispers of encouragement.

"You'll make an excellent mother. I'm sure of it dear. You are so beautiful. I 'm sure your baby will look just like you. Do you know who the father is?" I nodded my head and my sobs became heavier and I was soon choking on them. And then somewhere within the deep corners my mind I heard Erik's soothing music. I could hear his fingers lightly tapping the ivory keys of his sleek black piano. I could hear the pain and sadness in his voice. He was singing to me and reassuring me. "Anywhere you go let me go to. Christine, that's all I ask of you…" My sobbing slowed to a single tear and stopped. I had to be strong for this baby. I gathered my things and thanked the old woman placing some money for her in her hands.

I walked back to Rao- my house. I went into the bedroom and put on a nightgown and went to bed, knowing all too well that Raoul would not be sober when he returned. The night was dreamless and I woke in a panic. I hadn't had a dreamless night in so long that I had feared it to be a bad omen. When I woke I dressed myself and went to wait for Raoul in the parlor. I was hoping to catch him before he left. After an hour of debating on how to tell him he walked into the parlor.

"Raoul. Darling we need to talk." He looked at me cautiously and took a seat. I could see his lack of sleep and his lack of sober moments were starting to catch up with him. His hair was a mess and In the sunlight I could see the gray hairs coming in. His handsome blue eyes were grotesque and bloodshot with heavy black circles below them. His eyes darted around and I could tell he was on edge.

"What do you want?" His voice was just as harsh as his looks. His voice was ragged and accusing. Well, there's no time like the present…

"I'm pregnant, Raoul." I could see a thousand emotions as they passed through his face. Many of them were too quick for me to register. The first confusion and then some pride a little guilt. They didn't make sense. He wasn't angry. Well at least, none that I could find.

"Well I guess that was some honeymoon. It's a shame I can't remember most of it." What?! He thought the child was his? He thought that we… what? What could I say? Sorry but the child is Erik's? I felt myself nod and smile as he embraced me and swung me around. I wasn't conscious of what I was saying but I could hear my voice. "I'm glad we won't have to worry about making my heir later. But sooner than worrying about it later, right?" He put me down and grabbed my hand. "Do you know the gender? It is a boy, right?" I let a weak noise escape from my throat. He seemed to take that as a yes. He pulled on his shoes and pulled me out the door. I was expecting to be kicked out of his house so my coat and shoes were already on me. He pulled me down the street and into the first store he found. Baby cradles and clothes lined the walls. The shock was slowly wearing off. Why had I doubted his fathering skills? His family had been so close. His parents were the reason Raoul had invested in the Opera Populaire. He was actually kind of adorable, the way his eyes lit up with the news. He was already discussing which clothing to buy for his little viscount. He wanted only the best for his child. The best that money could buy.


	6. The Prodigy's Son

It's been nine and three quarter years, if you ask him, since the Lord blessed me with my loving Gustavé. He sent me an angel, an angel of love and music. And that angel gave me my Gustavé. Gustavé is a very lovely and intelligent boy. There is so much of him that reminds me of Erik, small things only I could notice.

"Gustavé come here!" I could hear Raoul yelling from the music room. The music room was made for Gustavé's fifth birthday. He started playing the piano and singing at the age of four. He overflowed with his father's talents. He was so gifted and so talented. I could watch him write music for hours just as I had with Erik. I ran to rescue Gustavé from whatever punishment Raoul was about to sentence upon him. Raoul's happy and loving mood towards my son didn't last. He grew irritated very quickly by the boy's crying. Something about Raoul unsettled Gustavé as a baby. Whenever Raoul entered a room Gustavé would cry. He could only be hushed by the sound of my singing. He was so much like his father.

When I got there Raoul was complaining about all of the sheet music strewn across the floors of the music room. Gustavé sensing my presence ran to find comfort with in my arms.

"Shhhh… It's alright dear." I looked up at Raoul with an angry expression. He had grown to know my love for my son. Where there were lines I knew never to overstep, when it came to my son, I would never let anything cause him harm, whether it was emotional or physical. "He is an artist, darling. He needs room to make a mess and solve problems. He needs a room to let his genius flow."

"If it was up to me this house would have no musical genius in it." I could hear the faint whisper under Raoul's breath. I picked up Gustavé and brought him to the piano bench. I started looking through his delicate pieces of parchment. I was trying to calm and soothe my sweet boy. I soon found a piece of music he had just recently finished. I started to sing his music back to him rocking him back and forth in my arms. Raoul, realizing that this would be a battle he wouldn't win, stomped out of the room, making sure to slam the door shut.

"Why does he hate my music mother?" I could see the tears start to form in his eyes.

"Oh darling, he doesn't hate it. He just doesn't have the ears to appreciate it. How about we clean up this mess to soothe his trouble mind?" Gustavé wiped his eyes and we knelt down to clean up the sheets. Suddenly somewhere back in my mind I could hear the fierce playing of Erik as he wrote another beautiful song. It was something I had never heard before. I knew that it was just my mind playing tricks on me, but at the same time it felt as though he was there at Gustavé's piano soothing away my troubles. I looked over my shoulder to find nothing but my darling boy picking up his music to make his father happy. Oh how I wish I could tell him of his real father. Erik would love that child more than anyone could. He would except him and hold him and sit him on his lap as they played beautiful melodies and harmonies down the black and white keys. Raoul needed his father.

"Mother, do you know where Coney Island is?" Gustave's light tenor voice rang in my ears. I shook my thoughts out of my head and looked at him.

"What?"

"Some boys were telling me of this place called Coney Island. It's in the paper." He got up and went to the parlor bringing back with his the thick newspaper. He showed me the first page. Sure enough there was an extravagant photograph of what looked like to be a large circus tent. I could sense the bright colors and beauty hidden behind the black and white ink. The headline read: "Mr. Y welcomes you to Phantasma." The article was explaining the opening of a new show in Coney Island. "Can we go mom? PLEASE!?"

"Gustavé darling, the article says that Phantasma resides in New York." Phantasma. There was something about reading and saying and even hearing that word that put a weird feeling in my stomach.

"Where's New York?"

"Well." I picked up Gustavé and brought him to Raoul's study. It was his father's old study and was hardly used these days. I sat at the large desk and sat Gustavé on my lap. I placed my finger on the globe directly on Paris. "We're here and New York is allllll the way over here." I turned the globe and drew a direct line across the Atlantic Ocean to New York." This all felt too familiar. It was like a really weird case of Déjà vu. I shook the thought from my mind.

"Oh please Mother!" My poor little boy had so many dreams. His eyes were pleading and it was so hard to say no.

"Maybe one day, Gustavé."

"You spoil that child!" I could hear Raoul yell from the room next door to his father's study. He walked into where we sat. "We are never going to go to America Gustavé. We don't have the money." I could feel Gustavé's dreams crumble in my lap. My poor son.

"How dare you say such things to him! Go to your room Gustave and let me speak to your father." Gustavé slipped off my lap and ran to his room before the tears could slip out of his big brown eyes. How dare Raoul treat him like that! Gustavé wasn't his child! He looked nothing like him! Why was Raoul ever foolish enough to believe he was! Raoul was an average height man with dirty blonde hair. His eyes were blue and cruel. Gustavé had my dark brunette curls with the slight touch of red when the sun hit it right. He had deep chocolate brown eyes like Erik and I. The shape of his eyes was that of his father's. So round with amazement yet usually set in a sad way as his mind contemplated the dark beauty of the world. He was taller than most boys just like his father and his fingers were longer like his fathers. His nose had the straight slope of his father's and the rounded button nose of me. He was our child and any fool could see that. How dare Raoul ever treat our son like that! He had no right.

"You dare question my own authority in my own home!?" He was past furious he growled his words and it was then that I could smell the mistake I had made. He had been drinking and I hadn't noticed. He walked toward me and in the blink of an eye he slapped me hard across the face. I heard it before I felt it. I stumbled back a little and as I clutched my cheek I could see him begin to register what he had just done. Raoul had never hit me before. Yes he sometimes grabbed my arms to hard and hurt me but never with such intent. Yes I was used to his aggression. Especially when he started coming home at night more sober. It wasn't as easy anymore to get out of sleeping with him so after a time I had to start separating my soul from my body.

I stood there stunned unable to comprehend what to do next. He fell to my knees apologizing. I was too stunned I walked past him and left. The opera house was finished now. With the new construction came the destruction of Erik's lair. I had nowhere to go. Raoul forbid my singing and attending of an the shows and so I hadn't been to the Opera Populaire in a while. But did I really want to make him even angrier? I found myself just sitting on the front steps of our house unable to understand him. I tried my hardest to love him but he made it so difficult. I couldn't leave him. My child needed a father… even if it wasn't his real one. I walked back inside to where Raoul was crumbled on the floor.

I knelt down to where he sat and placed my arm around him.

"It's okay darling. I understand that you meant no harm. It never happened." He looked up at me with a tear streaked face.

"Oh, Christine!" He threw his arms around me holding me a little too tightly. "I'm so sorry. I've just had so much stress lately. I need to tell you something." He pulled me into his lap much to my discomfort. "We're broke. I lost the last of our money last week in a game." That made so much sense with the way he had been acting recently.

"Oh darling, it's okay. We can move to a smaller home perhaps. If we can't afford this one. I have some money put away from my days at the opera house. I also have the money my father saved me before he died."

"Gone! It's all gone! I wasted it all on one hand" You did what! I almost yelled at him and pushed him away until the image of my son sitting unhappily on his bed flashed into my mind.

"It's okay we'll finger it out dear." There were only a few words that came to mind. Just love. Just live. Just give what I can give and take what little I deserve.


	7. Darkening Light

I would just like to take some time to thank everyone that has been reading my story. This is my first fan fiction and it makes me so glad to think that there are people out there that like my writing and that there are people out there that love Phantom just as much as me. Alright here's chapter 7.

Many of the servants had to be let go. I had to start managing the entire house. But on the bright side Raoul was slowly returning to himself. He stopped going out every day to drink and gamble. His drinking hours decreased to wine at dinner time. He was becoming easier to handle and easier to love. He usually spent the night in his office trying to manage our money. He had recently earned some money through some investments and was able to help us keep our home, but soon enough that money would run out. I had just tucked in Gustave. I walked into Raoul's study. He was growing more handsome with age, I had never noticed it before, perhaps it was because I couldn't remember the last time he was sober for such a long time. His dark dirty blonde hair was comber back from his face. His blue eyes were soft and kind yet serious as he flipped through his filed papers. I walked up behind him and put my arms around him kissing lightly on the cheek. I was trying to thank him all that he had done for me. I was thanking him for how hard he was trying to be a good husband and father. He relaxed into my embrace and I could hear him sigh as he let the calmness I lent him overtake him. As I looked down at the paper in his hand my name seemed to pop out.

"What's that dear?" I could tell he hadn't been expecting my question because he quickly shuffled the paper under his stack.

"It's nothing. Just a letter from a future investment."

"Raoul, my dear, I know you are not being honest. I saw my name on it. What is it?" I tried to hide my frustration under a tone of sweetness.

"It's honestly nothing. Nothing you need to worry about dear. I have everything under my control." I let it go. There was no need to pick a fight with him when we were both in such a good mood.

"Alright. I trust you, Raoul. I'm going to go to bed now. Will you be joining me?" Raoul looked up into my eyes and I could see that something was troubling him.

"No darling, there is work I must finish before tomorrow." He kissed me before I left the study. Being around Raoul was easier. Playing wife was become a lot simpler. The nights weren't too bed anymore. Although, I spent the night dreaming of being with another man while my husband held me in his arms, it was no longer out of repulsion. My marriage bed wasn't a horrifying thought anymore. The idea of being held in Raoul's arm didn't send terrifying shivers up my spine. He wasn't a scary beast to me anymore. Raoul was becoming more human and in turn I was becoming more accepting of him. I started to love him once more. No, it would never compare to the bitter sting of my love for Erik. It would never cause me heartache if he left. Raoul was becoming a dear friend to me once more. He was becoming the man I could go to with anything. He was turning back into the man I had once believed that I loved. I would stand at his side for his sake and my child's but also by my own choice.

I woke to Gustave bouncing up and down on my bed next to me. I opened my eyes to see his smile bigger than I had ever seen it before.

"What is it darling?" I brushed his hair from his forehead and pulled him into my lap.

"Look what I found!" I sat up and kissed him good morning on the very tip of his nose and took the piece of paper from his hands.

Dear Viscount Raoul De Chagny,

I am opening a new opera house in America. I was looking for an amazing performer to come and preform at its opening here in New York. It was during this search that I remembered you're talented wife. I went one the shows she had performed in Paris and was enchanted by her voice. She is an exquisite performer and I would love to have you and your family come to the opening of my house. I will pay you a large sum of money for her to perform for me. Please write me back soon so I can start my planning for the event.

Sincerely,

Oscar Hammerstein

"You see Mother! We get to go to New York! We can go to Coney Island, Mother!" By now Gustave was jumping up and down on my bed.

"Where did you find this Gustave?" He looked at me and stopped jumping. He must have noticed my distress because he sat down on the bed and looked at me with worried brown eyes.

"Well I went into, Father's study to look at the globe again and it was sitting on his desk." Sure enough, as I looked at the letter again I could see it was indeed the paper I had noticed Raoul reading last night.

"Gustave, where is your father? Does he know you have this." Gustave looked at me at first with first eyes full of confusion and then they quickly changed into a state of panic.

"Father left this morning before I woke. He had business or something. Why Mother? What is the matter?"

"I just do not think your father would appreciate you going through his things. That is all." There was something about that letter. It brought butterflies to my stomach and an instant wave of excitement. I wasn't sure if it was from Gustavé's excitement or my own for I would be singing once more. When Raoul returned home later that night for dinner, which he was starting to make sure never to miss, he was very clearly in a foul mood. I rushed to his side the moment he walked through the door. There was not even a tiny hint of alcohol on his breath. My excitement and proud got to me and I pulled him quickly into my embrace and kissed him hard. Of course, the force I managed wasn't close to what the strength I demonstrated to my Erik.

"Ow! Gosh Christine, what's wrong with you!"

"Oh! I'm sorry Raoul I guess I just got caught up in my love for you."

"Well keep under control Christine. You almost bit my lip!" I blushed and turned away. He marched past me to his office. I followed him in before he could shut me out.

"Is there anything you want to tell me? My excitement was over flowing Raoul hadn't allowed me to sing in so long. I was forced to hum quietly to myself only when he was out or when I was in the bath.

"What are you talking about?" He was obviously confused as to why I was so happy. "If I had something to say I would say it. Are you honestly that stupid that you can't tell I'm in a bad mood! Another one of my deals fell through!" The hurt hit before the shock.

"Hammerstein? But he sounded so excited in his letter. I was really looking forward to singing again and Gustave has been dreaming about Coney Island for weeks now." Now I could see his eyes light with fury.

"You went through my things! How dare you! After all I do for you and you don't even trust me!" He pushed past me through the doors and disappeared down to the cellar. He returned moments later holding a half empty bottle of wine. And I was quick to realize where the other half had disappeared to when he tried to stumble toward me.

"Darling! I meant no harm. I was just trying to tidy up your office for you so it could be nice for your return." I could feel the tears welling in my eyes.

"Gosh, Christine! You think I'm some pathetic idiot huh! Like I don't know what you were searching for!" What was he talking about? The way his worlds left his mouth stung more than the slap to face he had once given to me. Gustave came running into the kitchen. He must have heard the yelling and when I looked at him and saw the tears in his eyes my hypothesis was concluded.

"I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about Raoul. And now this conversation is through!" The way my voice sounded like a mother correcting a stubborn child chilled me to the bone. I grabbed Gustavé's hand and walked him to his room. I heard to look slam as Raoul collapsed upon the ground. I fell asleep in Gustavé's bed with my poor weeping child in my arms.

In the morning Gustave got dressed and left for school. I was left alone to face the monster I was forced to call Darling. Raoul had sobered up and was sitting in the parlor.

"Come here Christine!" I wasn't prepared to face him yet but at the sound of my name I turned and followed the sound of his voice. "I would like to apologize for what I did the other night. I'm sorry all of the stress of the day yesterday got to me and I had no right to take it out on you." I sighed and walked towards him and sat beside him on the ottoman. He placed his arm around me and pulled me closer placing a gentle kiss upon my cheek.

"Why were so angry." With a sigh he turned to face me and started to explain the events of yesterday.

"…and he refused my investment calling me a slob. He threatened to make me lose the rest of my businesses and … And as for Hammerstein I have no intention of allowing you to perform for him in another country. You are my wife and shall stay to care for our child and home. That is your responsibility. I will care for the money." I looked at him in utter disbelief.

"But I want to sing. I miss the applause and the rush…" He cut me off.

"But I don't want you to be off touring the world for operas. You are my wife and you are to do as I say. And I will not allow music into my household. I have contacted an interior designer to turn the music room into a sewing room for you. It will be more beneficial to our family."

"But I don't want to sew! I want to sing! I want to be me! You are taking away everything I have ever wanted and you will destroy my- our son's dreams! How dare you!" Raoul rose from the ottoman in obvious fury.

"How dare you speak to me like that! I will not let music enter my house! Music is nothing but sins spread by the devil of a man! That cursed monster who almost stole my life and my wife!" So that was it! He was trying take away everything that Erik represented. Well little did he know the child he thought to be his own was enough of a constant reminder.

"You can't keep music out of my life you beast! You are nothing but a monster! "And with that I ran to my bedroom and looked the door. I fell onto the bed wanting nothing more than to be caught in Erik embrace and to feel his soothing pulse and to hear his enchanting voice hush my sobs away. I needed the one thing on the planet I could never find. Honest and true love…


	8. Welcome to America

My tears faded away and my breathing became a steady pace once more. The house quieted and I could no longer hear the empty echoes of our fight ringing through my head. I slowly rose from the bed and straightened the wrinkles from my favorite black gown. I silently crept to the mirror. I pulled back the loose strands from my face using a few stray bobby pins. I wiped away the smeared mascara from my cheeks. My eyes still looked puffy but that would have to do. I opened the door and walked into Raoul's office hoping to find him. When he noticed my presence he looked up and the sadness could break any girl's heart. Anyone but me I stood in the doorway with arms folded across my chest and looked right past him. Seeing how sad he was filled my veins with pure anger. Why did he think he could continue to treat me so harshly and expect me to forgive him so easily.

"I called Hammerstein. I was almost too late but he was so excited he called and has our departure already scheduled for tomorrow afternoon." I couldn't wrap my head around what he was saying. Was he honestly letting us go to America and was he really going to allow me to sing once more? With one sudden rush joy flooded through my entire body and I ran to him and wrapped him in a hug. "I'm so sorry Christine. The monster is in the past he doesn't have any hold on you now you are mine and I need to believe that and stop denying you freedom. I am turning into the monster now. I can feel it and I beg of your forgiveness." I nodded and his face blurred in the tears that filled my eyes. Suddenly I could hear the front door open and close. Gustave came running into the office. When we saw Raoul and my tears he stopped dead in his tracks.

"No darling it's alright. Your father has something he wishes to tell you." Raoul looked at me and smiled. He realized what i was doing. I was letting him have the good news. I was letting him cause the thrill of excitement that would soon fill our child's eyes.

"Um, well, Gustave we are heading out of the country for a while. We are going to take a small vacation to America.

Later that night it took a complete hour to calm Gustave and get him to give into sleep. With Gustave trapped into a deep sleep I began to pack his things. Suddenly Gustave woke with a fright. He yelled my name and I rushed to from where I was standing at his wardrobe.

"Please Mother, I'm scared. What a dream, an awful dream. Someone strange and mad seizing me and drowning me."

"Oh hush now Darling. It was only a dream." I cradled him back to sleep in my arms. Once he was sleeping once more I continued my packing. Something felt off though. Something didn't feel quite right. His dream and dream I had been having since I was pregnant with Gustave all seemed to feel like a very bad omen. Once I finished in Gustavé's room I continued on to my own. Something in me made my hands grab only the most beautiful of the dresses I owned. I told myself that it was because there would be crowds of people everywhere and I didn't want to embarrass my husband. Yet something in the back of my mind whispered something different. Something that made my stomach heave. I finally finished packing my and Raoul's things. I set the cases in the foyer of our grand home and went back to my room to sleep in preparation for the days ahead of me. Raoul stayed up all night in his study worrying over something I didn't know about.

I the morning the sweet smell of food filled my nostrils. Something was off and I could feel it. My nerves were on edge. I felt anxious and nervous and when my reflection stared back at me I felt unconscious and ugly. There was only one person that could make me feel so unsure of myself. There was only man who left me knowing that I would never be good enough for him. It had been ten years today since we conceived Gustave why was he still haunting my every thought and shadowing my every emotion. I felt tied to him and could hear his music in my head. But the strange thing was I didn't know the music in my head. But I could feel with every fiber of my body that it was his music. There was something about the way the notes floated when he played they flowed together and were always perfectly fit within one another. There were only two people I had ever met that could play like that one was Erik and the other, his son. Erik! That was what was wrong. Somehow leaving Paris felt like I was leaving part of me behind. But that seemed funny because I knew that piece of me had been missing for ten years to the day.

I walked to the dining room clutching my heart and feeling the wound from my soul be ripped apart from its other half. I could almost feel the shards of my broken heart ripping through my skin and making it near impossible to breath. Gustave and Raoul sat at the table together enjoying a large breakfast. Raoul quickly jumped out of his seat and rushed my side putting his arms around me and pulled me into his body. I could feel his warm breath tickle my neck and smell the sweet smell of syrup that radiated out with breath.

"Did you know my darling wife that our anniversary is tomorrow?" I had completely forgotten. Instead of thinking about my wedding that morning like an average wife would, I spent it daydreaming about the passionate night before my wedding, held tight in another man's embrace. Oh how I yearned for that man's touch even now when my husband held me so close. I smiled and pulled his lips to mine hoping my husband could enter my thoughts for once and force Erik out of them. I couldn't stand how I still found myself centering my life around Erik. I spent all day swooning over Erik's image in my head. For all I knew he was dead now. And even if he wasn't dead to the world, he was dead to me.

After breakfast, Raoul grabbed our bags and took them out to the carriage waiting for us. I bundled up Gustave in his jacket and we walked out to join Raoul. Raoul grabbed my hand and place a tender kiss on it as he helped me up into the carriage. We rode in silence. I help Raoul's hand the entire time and happened to turn to smile at him on multiple occasions. This was my family and he was my husband why was I still giving Erik all of the power over my relationship? He left me with a son in the cold morning with nothing but a rose to remember him. I owed him nothing! Especially not my love!

An hour later we reached the docks and boarded the bus that would sail us the way to America. It was the land of fresh starts and new beginnings. There was something about that nickname that sent chills up my spine. We quickly found our room on in the guest quarters of the large ship. The trip was long and lasted three weeks. Most of which I spent sleeping or in the bathroom do to sea sickness. Raoul stayed by my side the entire time holding back my hair and helping me to bed. The night of our anniversary Raoul set out candles and petals and we had a romantic night while, Gustave stayed with some friends he met on the boat. I'm not going to say that even though it was romantic, it didn't compare to half of what I felt the night I was with Erik. I wouldn't say it and forbid myself from thinking it for as long as I could. When the ship finally landed in America, Raoul dressed himself and Gustave in elegant matching suits which I had adored the day he bought them in the ship's tailor shop. I tried my best not to look sick let alone be sick. I wore an elegant long white lace gown with a red velvet jacket over top of it and beautiful matching hat with a large white feather upon it. I slung a white fur around my arms and walked off the ship. Of course all of the other passengers had disembarked before me. I felt queasy and sick but at the same time I took my time absorbing everything around me.

There were tall factories and people rushing around to get back and forth through the streets. Some looked sad and worried and poor while others leisurely made their way through the streets making sure they had their noses up at all times. As I took my first step onto American soil with my family right behind me we were attacked by reporters and photographers. I hadn't seen so many flashes since my wedding day, and of course during the time of the Opera Ghost murders. But even in Paris, the reporters were never so cut throat. And Raoul had no problem falling right into the spot light.

Yet I was shocked by all of the things they were yelling at my poor Raoul. They were throwing him under the bus and accusing him of our money loss. Yes, he was to blame but they were being so cruel to him. Raoul had no problem defending himself though. And suddenly my sympathy fell onto those who he came at. Seeing Gustave the reporters' attention shifted.

"Hey kid, what's it like to have a famous mother?"

"The opera house doesn't open for a few more weeks what yah gonna do? While some figured my son would choose some gaudy baseball field, my son proudly raised his chin and said, "I want to Coney Island and learn how to swim." They all were enchanted by darling son's words. Suddenly out of nowhere the wind shifted and the clouds hitched. The atmosphere turned dark and the rain began to poor. Raoul herded us under his small umbrella, holding me tenderly around my waist while my hand rested upon Gustavé's shoulder. Gustave looked up and pointed out a dark carriage riding toward us. There was something ominous and too familiar about that carriage it sent chills through my whole body. Something wasn't right.


	9. The Entrance to the Devil's Circus

Teehee now I'm finally getting to the point where I can write about Erik. This will get good…Hopefully I hope you guys like it. I'm trying to stay true to ALW's masterpiece. And I think it's about time that you should know I have some new twists that Andrew didn't have that I thought should have happened and also I'm going to write about Erik's life in between POTO and LND! Whoop! okay story time…

The Carriage was holding three of the strangest looking people I had ever seen. They introduced themselves as Squelch, Dr. Gangle, and Fleck. Squelch was a pretty intimidating man. He was large and I could feel Raoul tense up beside me when he saw him. But the moment Squelch opened his mouth to speak I could sense his innocence and how friendly, warm-hearted, and funny he was. Dr. Gangle was a tall narrow stick of a man that toward over you. His movements were awkward and unnatural. He was a strange man that you could seem to take your eyes off of. Fleck was a tiny young woman. She was half of the height of Gustave. I shook my thoughts away. Gustave was already climbing into their carriage.

"Gustave! What on earth are you doing!?"

"Come this way Prima Donna, Mr. Hammerstein's expecting you." I looked at the very strange people that surrounded and made up my decision of what I was going to do. I made my way up into the carriage with the hand of Dr. Gangle and Fleck holding up my dress. Raoul with no other choice, climbed into the carriage behind me. There it was. That feeling that I was being watched crept in on me and I suddenly felt claustrophobic.

The ride was short as we pulled up to the old building we would be staying.

"This is it? This is the place we were booked?!" Raoul looked up at the building in disgust. He jumped out of the carriage as soon as it stopped and walked quickly inside to get the keys to our room. He took the umbrella and left me to bring the bags in. Thankfully Dr. Gangle and Squelch were kind enough to carry the heavy bags to our room. I thanked them both with a kiss on the cheek. They blushed and made their way back to the carriage. I looked at Gustave and smiled.

"Now we are not going to tell your father about that." He smiled and we both laughed yet I could feel a sour taste on my tongue for telling Gustave that Raoul was his father. I Gustave opened the door and we went off to our bedrooms to unpack. Raoul was somewhere complaining to a manager. Inside the rooms were large and so lovely. The ceilings were high and the balcony in the sitting room was lovely. Sitting in the middle of my bedroom and the sitting room sat two lovely, sleek, black pianos. It made me long for music. It had been so long since Gustave and I were alone. That was the only time he could ever play. I picked him up from where he sat on the floor unpacking his father's clothes and carried him over to the piano setting him upon the bench. There was already a lovely piece of music sitting on the piano's music stand. The music looked difficult to read yet his tiny ten year old hands easily slid across the keys never daring to hit one wrong note. I sat and finished unpacking. The song was finishing when the front door was thrown open and an angry Raoul stepped in through the doorway.

"What a dreadful town. What a vulgar place. What an awful mistake to have come here, to be on display in that shameless way for crude common lower class scum here. How can he dare to treat us so?" Raoul made his way directly to where the alcohol was kept in the room and started to fill his glass. Darling Gustave ran to his father and tried to calm his angry words away. He picked up his new toy that Fleck had given him.

"Father dear, come play with me. Come and see this toy of got."

"What a snob at most from our so called host. Did he think sending freaks would be funny? Could the fool have that thought that our pride was bought by his filthy American money? What a farce what an outright slap in the face. It's an utter disgrace. I've got a mind to pack up and go. Never you min the debt we owe. Who would have thought we sank this low." Gustave was growing more anxious trying to soothe away the troubles filling the atmosphere more and more by each passing second.

"Father please come play with me!" Raoul was so blind he couldn't see his son reaching out to him. And again the sour taste came to my mouth.

"Gustave, enough! The answer's no!" Gustave defeated and not paying attention went back to playing the piano. Shocked at what he did I ran to comfort Raoul before his direction of anger changed to Gustave. But I was too late.

"Must you play now?" His anger was sizzling away with the music.

"I think it's beautiful."

"What is it anyway?"

"I don't know it was just here on the piano."

"Well it hurts my head." His anger was returning. Gustave realized and jumped away from the piano to go play with his toy. Right as Raoul took a step towards my son I jumped in between them.

"Please let's not fight dear. I'm sure Mr. Hammerstein never intended a slight dear."

"How dare he patronize us. We should never have accepted." Ignoring my most important reason for coming to America I held his arm and whispered to him.

"We need the money that's all. That's why things haven't been right dear."

"Why doesn't it surprise me that I get the blame here?" That took me off guard. I didn't want to upset Gustave but I would rather give up my dreams then upset Raoul into what he was like before. He was already almost half way done with the bottle he had just opened moments ago.

"Let's leave tonight dear, if that would serve to ease your troubled mind. Leave the hurt behind." His anger was leaving his face and he was calming. His hand was slowly lowering his glass from his lips and it was returning it to the table.

"Father dear come over here and look at what they gave me. Wind it up and Father see. Look it plays a melody." Raoul walked over to Gustave to finally give him the attention he had been seeking. Suddenly a hauntingly familiar song rose out of the toy and sailed through the air chilling my bones. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. I woke from my frozen state. Raoul answered the door to find a messenger boy handing him a letter.

"What's this?" The messenger handed over the letter and Raoul closed the door in his face. He stood and read the letter.

"What is it?" Suddenly his serious face cocked a smile.

"From Hammerstein, he wants to meet me in the hotel bar. Alone."

"Alone?" I knew from past experiences that alone was never a good sign. Raoul went off to fetch his coat.

"Well, he may lack courtesy but he does serve a certain savatant in choosing a business rand vue."

"Raoul, please."

"Please what?" I could see him getting angry as he realized that I was requesting him not to drink.

"Nothing." I didn't want to start fighting already. This was a new land. It was the land of fresh starts. I watched him turn and leave walking out the door leaving it to slam. I stared after him hoping he'd turn and come back. But I knew it wouldn't happen.

"Father never plays with me. Doesn't he love me?" I looked to see Gustavé's devastated face looking back up at me.

"Oh darling, of course he does! Love's a curious thing. It often comes disguised. Look at love through. And why? It often goes unrecognized. So look with your heart and not with your eyes. The heart understands the heart never lies believe what it feels and trust what it shows. Look with your heart. The heart always knows. Love is not always beautiful, not at the start. So open your arms and close your eyes tight. Look with your heart and when it finds love your heart will be right." Oh Erik… "Love from someone who knows, make sure you don't forget. Love you misunderstand is love that you'll regret…" How could I leave him in the theatre like that? I hurt him so badly. I hurt him exactly how he hurt me. Oh my poor angel.

"Look with your heart…"Gustavé's voice shattered my thoughts and pulled my out of the past and back into current reality. "…and not with your eyes. The heart can't be fooled."

"The heart is too wise." By now I realized I wasn't singing about Raoul, I was teaching Gustave to appreciate love. The love I had only ever experienced from Erik. The love, which I misunderstood and would always regret.

"Forget what you think." Gustave was beginning to understand what I was telling him. And somehow he was starting to teach me.

"Ignore what you hear."

"Look with your heart it always sees clear."

"Love is not always beautiful, not at the start."

"But open your arms and close your eyes tight. Look with your heart and when it finds love your heart will be right." I pulled him into me and cradled my son and poured every once I had in me into him. Gustave was my pride and joy now and I would do anything for him.

I kissed his head. "I'll be in, in a minute." Gustave ran off to change in his pajamas. I picked up his toy off of the floor and placed it on the piano and it started to play. The melody was too familiar it was starting to freak me out. I started to walk away when it suddenly stopped in the middle of the song. I turned back and in one swift movement the balcony doors flew open.


	10. Suffocating in the Dark

**Disclaimer: I own nothing! The music and characters belong to Andrew Lloyd Webber and Gaston Leroux!**

_So sorry that I wrote you guys so many chapters today a complete overflow. Four Chapters is a little crazy. I just felt really inspired. And I had to get to Erik and write through the song that inspired my Phanfiction. I know that this part is the play. I'm just going to write through the play and write the thoughts and emotions I thought should have been portrayed. But I'm twisting the end and writing past it. Remember to read all the chapters before this one. Please Read and review. Hope you Enjoy _

There he was standing in all his glory. He was tall and he looked stronger than he had back then. He wore black dress pants and shoes. His chest was covered by a white button down shirt with a black vest over top of it. Over all of that was a long black jacket with many intricate designs sewn in to it. His Bone structure on half on his face made him so strikingly beautiful and his dark brown eyes bore a hole through me releasing my soul to him. The other side of his face was a white plastic mask that caught the light elegantly. It was clearly made to fit only his face. My Erik. The love of my life. NO! He left me alone in the most vulnerable time in my life. He left me with child and a cruel husband. And no matter how many times I prayed my angel would come to save me, he never did. He made me feel so small and weak. It was just too much…

I woke sitting on the settee. What had happened and then my eyes focused on the shape that sat upon the floor beside me, Erik. He reached up to touch me and I moved out of his grasp. I would not give him the satisfaction of making me swoon at his touch. I already fainted from seeing him.

"So it was all an empty lie, one final lie to fool us all! To make your disappearance our story's end, to put your life beyond recall. How DARE you come and claim me now! Invade my life, ensnare my voice!" I was trembling with the emotional overload he was putting on me. He broke my heart! I wanted to fall to the ground and cry. And I missed him. I wanted to fall into his arms and let him comfort me yet at the same time I was so pissed that he would choose now to take me back! He could have stayed and we could have had a family and lived a life of love and devotion. The life I had always wanted, the life I had always needed. I wanted to slap his beautiful face so he could feel the pain he put me through for TEN WHOLE YEARS! How dare he! And yet I loved him so much that his sudden presence made my heart explode. The sudden presence of the other half of my soul made my whole body feel over crowded within. I wanted to hurt him. I wanted to hold him. I wanted to cry because of him. But most of all I wanted to fight the urge I had to rip his clothes of and have him.

"If you could know the pain I've known then you would know I had no choice." His voice was addictive and it almost made me give in to urges. "My Christine…" And with that I snapped out of it.

"YOUR Christine?! I was yours one brief night long ago." My mind started to slip away back to the beautiful night where there was no pain, no doubts, only love. But I shook the thoughts away. And turned away from him and walked towards the piano. "…Long ago, with a man that I no longer know." I was afraid that if stared into his eyes any longer or if I was too close to him I would lose my edge. And then his velvety voice tore me away from my body and mind and my soul began to cling to him once more. I fought it but he made it so hard.

"Ah, Christine, you came and found where I hid, don't you deny that you did that long ago night." I tried to toss him from my thoughts I would give him the satisfaction of seeing the effect that still had on me, the effect that had begun to intensify every day sense that night. "Once there was a night beneath the moonless sky, too dark to see a thing, too dark to even try." I could feel his lands touched the skin exposed on my shoulders. My skin was reeling and begging him for more. My mind started to slip back to that night as I stumbled though the tunnels below the Opera Populaire searching for a sign of my beloved. I slipped of his grip once more and sat upon the ottoman.

"I stole to your side, tormented by my choice. I couldn't see your face, yet trembled at your voice." I could feel the goosebumps rising on my arm as I remembered how destroyed he had sounded. "And I touched you."

"And I felt you."

"**And I heard those ravishing refrains**,"

"the music of your pulse,"

"the singing in your veins." I wondered if he could hear it now because it was definitely hitting some pretty high notes.

"And I held you."

"And I touched you," I could still feel the movement of his hands as they crept along my waist to draw me into him.

"And embraced you," I could feel his body in my hands and imagined it being there again right now.

"And I felt you,"

"**And with every breath and every sigh**."

"I felt no longer scared."

"I felt no longer shy." I snuck a quick over my shoulder to see if he was serious. Did that night really have as big of an impact on him as it did me. He got up and walked towards me as we sang together once more.

"**At last our feelings bared beneath the moonless sky**."

"And blind in the dark a soul gazed into song. I looked into your heart and saw you pure and whole." He knelt down to my side and placed his head upon my shoulder. It physically hurt to be so close to him once again after trying to erase him for my memory. But I was willing to die to hold him once more and to be engulf by his love.

"Cloaked in the dark, with nothing to suppress, a woman and a man, no more and yet now less. He grabbed my hand. "And I kissed."

"And caressed you."

"**And the world around us fell away. We said things in the dark. We never dared to say." **He stood up and pulled me into him. And I found my body a little bit too willing.

"And I caught you."

"And I kissed you."

"And I took you."

"And I begged you,"

"**With a need too urgent to deny. Again and then again, beneath the moonless sky.**" I was ready right then and there to beg him once more. But when I reached up to grab his face and bring his lips down to mine. He pulled away and I lost my nerve. The feelings of doubt and abandonment crept back into my soul, torturing me with its cruel stabs.

"And when it was done, before the sun could rise…" Oh man. Here it came, the explanation I had yearned for all these years. I need to know why he had left me that morning. "…ashamed of what I was, afraid to see your eyes. I stood while you slept and whispered a goodbye, and slipped into the dark beneath the moonless sky." I was so hurt, yet forgiving. He left me because he thought I would leave him and he couldn't go through that pain again. And yet I was still furious, I wanted to be with him for the rest of my life and instead he left me alone with a child to raise I was practically forced into a horrible marriage by the state he left me in.

"And I loved you! Yes, I loved you." I walked up to him. I had to tell him how I felt. I wanted to see his reaction when I told him of the pain he put me through. "I'd have followed anywhere you led. I woke to swear my love and found you gone instead." He turned and grabbed my waist. I could see the pain in his eyes and regret as tears started to pour of his eyes. It didn't take a while for mine to follow.

"And I loved you." Hearing those words come out of his mouth was so heart breaking and the tears started to rush. He looked up into my eyes and I grabbed his shoulders trying to push him away. I wanted to be mad because even hating him was better than the pain I was feeling then.

"And I loved you." I sang my feelings back to him. He needed to know how I felt for him. Even if it was the last thing I did.

"And I left you." I heard his voice crack in pain. He held on tighter me I held on tighter in return.

"And I loved you." I think we were both scared we would lose each other once again.

"And I had to both of us knew why." He spun away trying to hide his sobbing face from me.

"…we both knew why."

"**And yet I can't regret from now until I die, the night I can't forget…**" He looked up into my eyes and it was the final step it took until we would be fully connected to one another body and soul. I could feel my heart rip in half placing one half of itself inside his chest while the other half of his heart snuggled its way into mine. "**…beneath the moonless sky."** So it was settled. We were booth still so passionately in love with one another, just like how we had been that night. Left hand fell on my lower waist pulling me into him. I grabbed his collar and pulled him closer. His right hand wound its way into my hair. I was about to give him myself until his words brought me back to the present.

"And now?" Harsh reality set in and I remembered where I was and who I was, Viscountess Christine De Chagny. I pulled away from him, afraid I would once again succumb to the urges he made me have.

"How can you talk of now for us?" And bit my lip and said the heartbreaking words that set us firmly in reality and destroyed our world of fantasy. "There is no now." My voice cracked and I turned from him and fled onto the balcony.

I heard his footsteps as he followed behind me. He was smart not to touch me. He knew how on edge I was. There would always be things he didn't understand about me.

"Once upon another time, our story had only begun. You chose to turn the page and I made choices too. Once upon that other time we did what we thought must be done and now we have no choice. We love, we live, we give what we can give and take what little we deserve." I was so hard to tell him. When he left my life didn't just stop and wait for his return. And now he had to know that I had duties as a wife and as a mother. I could hear the heartache in his voice.

"Once upon another time, I knew how our story would end and maybe I was wrong." So he regretted when he left me as much I had regretted leaving me maybe there was still hope for us. "But now the moments on and time keeps moving on." Get a grip Christine. You are a woman with responsibilities don't forget that! It can't happen and it won't happen! "Were it still that other time I'd make time itself somehow bend. But, now I'm not that strong and time keeps moving on." But why couldn't time freeze for just a moment? Why couldn't we have one more night together? Stop hoping Christine, there's no point!

"**We love, we live, we give what we can give and take what little we deserve.** **We love, we live, we give what we can give and take what little we deserve." **I turned to see him inches from me. I wanted him so badly. He raised his hand to touch my heart. The image of my family came to mind and I moved quickly to the opposite side of the balcony. "**Once upon another time…**" I couldn't let him get to me again.

"Ten long years of yearning, years of dreaming of this moment when that miracle, that peerless instrument plays for me just fleetingly lace the ghost which tortures me, tortures me." His voice broke my heart I wanted to turn to him and pull him into me and keep him locked away in my heart forever. He deserved to be locked away in the heart that beat only for him, to feel the love that could only ever be his. But then something in him changed. He got his edge back. And his tone of voice scared me. "Ah, Christine. I know what Hammerstein is paying you. I will double the amount for just one night's work here in my concert halls."

"No." I knew what would happen. I would get lost in his music and loose myself in him and he would steal my all too willing self away from my family just like he had during _Don Juan Triumphant_.

"Just one night, Christine, one song that is all I ask." One song would continue onto a life time of operas with how easily I gave into him.

"Why should I? For ten years you led me to believe you were dead and now you lure us here. And expect me to do your bidding. Submit to you again. I won't do it. I owe you nothing."

As I turned away to walk away and leave him there on the balcony, Gustave came running out running into my arms.

"Mother please, I'm scared. What a dream, an awful dream. Someone strange and mad seizing me and drowning me." I hushed his silent tears and stroke his head holding him in my arms. I looked to see Erik over his shoulder. I could see the hurt in his face as he realized I had give birth to a child. A child that wasn't his. He probably expected me to turn the child away and never introduce them.

"Come and meet a friend of mine." But what kind of mother would I be if I didn't introduce my child to his real father.

"Welcome to my world young friend." Gustave turned around to face the Phantom of the Opera, not that he had grown to ever hear those stories. Raoul found it sickening to glorify Erik and I found it horrifying to relive the events.

"Your world? Where are we?" He slowly walked towards the kind new stranger.

"We're in Phantasma little Viscount on Coney Island," Gustave to give the most excited grin I had ever seen on his face. "A world of fantasy," Erik lifted Gustave up on to the railing of the balcony. My heart began to race. This was my child and I knew from the past that Erik tended to overestimate the human body's strength. I just kept picturing Gustave falling. I looked over the failing and we were up so high. We were on the top floor, the fifth floor. I held onto Gustavé's arm and pleaded with Erik to put him down. But he continued to talk. "Where illusion is emperor. Tell me where you'd like to go. Tell me what you'd like to see." He then turned to face me. "Madame, please, I insist." I tried to take a half step back to prove to Erik that I still trusted him, but, it was difficult to do.

"Could you show me, if you please, all Phantasma's mysteries, all that's strange and weird and dark, in the shadows of the park?" Erik placed Gustave back on the ground and I could see an idea settle into his mind.

"You shall see it all tomorrow. In fact, I myself will show you. I promise." I placed my hands on Gustavé's shoulders and led him back inside.

"Off to sleep now Gustave." I grabbed his hand and started to walk him to his room. Gustave turned to me with a puzzled expression.

"Why does he wear a mask Mother? Is he a magician?" I had quite honestly forgotten Erik's mask. I had become so accustomed to him that it was just part of him. But after a moment of thought I thought of what Erik had been capable of.

"Yes darling, in his way." Gustave let go off my hand and ran to his bedroom to get back to sleep. He knew the sooner he went to sleep the sooner tomorrow would come. He left me alone by the piano to face Erik alone. Suddenly I could feel Erik's eyes on me. I turned to see his eyes boring into me, looking into my soul.

"What a child, full of life, Full of you, my Christine. Help me through this sadness. Do this kindness for your mentor or you progeny, that perfect specimen may disappear on Coney Island, vanish here on Coney Island. Ah, Christine." All of the love and warmth I had found in him as he held our son disappeared. How could he say such a thing? Could he really love me when he threatened me and the life of our child?

"What are you saying? How could you! After all that we've been! Who are you?!" I could feel the anger and hurt rise in my voice and I didn't dare disguise it. He walked toward me at a quickening pace.

"I am your Angel of Music. I am dying, Christine, suffocating here in the dark." He grabbed me tight around the waist pulling me close into him. "Give me breath. Give me life. Sing for me or I will take from you everything that you have ever loved." I didn't care how pathetic at that point he was hurting me. He was wounding me with the knives of his words.

"No, no you can't." I ripped myself out of his grip and ran to the other side of the piano, collapsing on the its bench. He leaned close across the piano and I turned away from him refusing to let him see my reaction, refusing to give him the satisfaction.

"Oh but I can. A man as hideous as this, believe me, is capable of anything." The way the words fell from his mouth and the lack of love in his eyes cut me deeper than anything he had ever done. I had no choice, once again the Phantom of the Opera was forcing me to do his bidding.

"And what am I to sing?" I turned to look into his eyes I hoped that maybe the pain on my face would sway him and get him to leave me and my family alone. But there wasn't a hint of emotion in his smooth face.

"One song composed by me." He grabbed the music resting on the piano and slid it my way.

"And then we're free to leave?" He walked towards me.

"And of course receive the princely fee. Is it on with the show? Does he stay? Does he go?" And with that Erik went out onto the balcony and disappeared leaving me with his music. There was nothing to do but learn the music. I opened the folder and began to read and hum along. The piece was titled _Love Never Dies_. Ink droplets were scattered all along the page where he had over dipped the pen. Lines were scribbled out and rewritten, but the thing that pooped out more than his music, were the lyrics. They were so beautiful and they sang to my heart and caressed my soul. They reminded me of our love that we had once been free to share, until the night I ruined everything. I stood and quickly ran out onto the balcony after Erik. I had so much to ask him. Was the song about us? Had he really felt that way? Did he still feel that way? But the Balcony was empty. There wasn't a sign of life let alone of Erik. I stood and looked up in the moonless night. A new moon, it couldn't help but steal my breath away. I heard the door open and close. Raoul stormed into the room.

"He's nowhere to be seen! Insolence!" I was afraid to ask who he was talking about. I hoped to God that he hadn't heard what had occurred only moments before.

"Who?"

"Hammerstein! What the devil is going on in this place?" He already had a drink in his hand and so I figured it would be best to explain the new situation while he was mostly sober.

"Raoul…"

He turned to look at me with a new found nervousness in his eyes. I must have been echoing my own. "Christine…"

"Things have changed, Raoul." The nervousness drain from his face replaced by a new calmness, I figured was an effect of the lack of alcohol in his glass.

"Excuse me?"

"I am no longer to sing for Hammerstein." He got up and finished his glass. He walked over to me and placed my trembling hands in his confusion taking over his face.

"What do you mean? What did you do, Christine?" He pulled my chin up so I I was looking up directly into his eyes.

"The owner of this show, Phantasma, has offered double that of Hammerstein." I forced a smile onto my face.

"What do you mean? What's the catch?" The smile must not have been believable.

"No catch. He just wanted me more, I guess." He pulled in for a long kiss and he stayed up late drinking in celebration while I was more than happy to go off to sleep and dream the night away. But that's what actually happened. I never fell asleep. The night stole in pacing the floors. I would start to close my eyes but then I could have sworn I heard Gustave scream. Tomorrow would be a difficult day.


	11. Disapearance on Coney Island

**Sorry that it has been such awhile since my last update. I've been grounded. But I'll make up for my missed time, expect 4 chapters hopefully tonight and 4 tomorrow. Enjoy **

Dawn finally broke through the clouds. The light shined brightly on my face and with a groan I sat up and rubbed my eyes. A night full of tossing and turning and lack of sleep really wears out one's body. My paranoia had failed to wear off and yet I had to make it seem as though everything was fine so Raoul wouldn't catch on. I got out of bed and went into the bathroom. I turned the nozzle of the tub on so that the room was quickly full of the hot steam of the running water. I undressed and sat in the tub as the water filled around me. The water was scalding and my skin was turning red where ever it was touched by the hot water. But soon my tense and aching muscles gave into the warmth and let go of their anxiety. I poured salts into the bath hoping it would open my brain and give me time to think. What was Erik's aim? Why was he doing this to me? Why did he have to do this to my heart? I was finally beginning to believe that I would never see him! I wasn't looking around every corner hoping to get a glimpse of the end of his coat as he walked by. I didn't catch myself zoning out of conversations just to hope to hear his music. I was beginning to accept what had happened. My wounded heart was beginning to heal and then he had to invade my life again and rip the wound clear open.

I sat in the bath tub crying softly to myself. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. It was followed by a soft voice.

"Mother, are you almost done. I want to go explore. I want to go find Mr. Y!" And why was he so intent on my child. He wants to take him away from me but at the same time the last night he had been so kind and gentle with Gustave. He offered to show Gustave around the park and let his dreams run wild. He offered to take my child under his wing, the child he believed to be Raoul's. I shook my thoughts away and put my voice in control.

"Yes, Darling. I'll be out in a moment." I stood in the bath and grabbed the closest towel. It was black and it was made of the softest material I had ever felt. On the side a gold Y was embroidered. I could help my mind from slipping away to his bed and what it must be like now in this new world above land. Was it soft and light like the towel wrapped around my body or was it still the black silk I remembered wrapped around me 10 years ago. I had to get a grip. Erik wasn't the same man from the night. He was now the man that followed that morning. But even as I thought that I felt my breath catch as I thought of what he told me that night. Erik had left ashamed of what he was. He thought I would be disgusted by him and myself. He believed that I was going to leave him again. I understood then what that would be like. If I had to go through this pain twice I wouldn't survive. My entire soul would shatter from within. I would be nothing but an empty shell of broken pieces. I placed on my slip and laced my corset. I put on the white lace robe that I had since my days in the opera and slipped into my bedroom. Gustave was waiting for me on my bed, trying so hard to contain his joy. I walked over to the wardrobe and pulled out the first outfit I saw. It was a beautiful olive green skirt with a matching jacket and white blouse. It hit in all the right places making me look long and thin.

I slipped out of the robe and pulled on the blouse. It felt soft and light on my overheated skin. I could feel myself blush as I started to think of Erik's reaction to my outfit. Would he think I was beautiful as he once had when I was younger and talented? Once again I shook the thoughts of Erik from my mind and pulled the skirt over my head and pulled it down to my slender waist. What if he hated me? What if I disgusted him? He believed that I had conceived a child with Raoul, even once that thought had brought nausea to me. I pulled on the jacket and walked over to my mirror. I combed my brown curly hair. I had at once point been down to my waist, now it just went past my shoulders. Raoul had insisted after the wedding, that I cut it to look more like a noble Viscountess. I wish I hadn't followed through on his plans. I missed my hair. I pulled what remained of the long beautiful lock up with bobby pins letting two curls fall over my shoulder. I quickly placed and secured the beautiful hat that Raoul had bought me and turned around to face Gustave.

"Well how do I look?" His eyes shone bright with pride.

"You look so beautiful, so very beautiful." I laughed and went to his side. I picked up my handsome son and spun him around. He reminded me so much of Erik that heart couldn't help but ache every time I looked at him. I gently set him on the ground and grabbed his hand. We began to walk out the door until I remembered what I was forgetting. I turned around and walked to the piano and grabbed Erik's sheet music and left the hotel with my precious boy at my side. When the carriage brought us to Mr. Y's big tent, I started looking through the music once more. People were already starting to prepare for tonight's performance. Gustave was becoming restless as he absorbed the excitement and chaos around him. Pretty soon he was running around the workers, chasing a small child dressed as a black cat, as they rushed to get their jobs done before, I can imagine, they had to talk to the boss. I wondered how scared they were of Eri- of Mr. Y.

"Slow down Gustave! There are people working here. Be careful!" My paranoia was coming back and my having to chase after my child wasn't helping. He looked up at me with earnest eyes.

"But I want to find Mr. Y and go see the island." How was I to keep my child away from Eri- Mr. Y? Did I even have the right to do so?

"I'm sure he'll send for you when he's ready." Suddenly a familiar voice came from behind me. I turned to see Raoul talking to Dr. Gangle. He was holding a rather large folder and wearing a rather irritated expression.

"Who is this Mr. Y? What does he do, apart from spending ludicrous amounts of money on light entertainment?"

"Father, look over there!" Gustave ran off and Raoul started after him.

"Gustave slow down!" I was looking off into the direction they had just left when another voice filled my ears. It had been a long time, but I knew that I knew that voice.

"Heaven help me, could it be? No it couldn't possibly!" I turned and saw a woman staring at me in shock.

"Sorry do I-" I looked up from my music in confusion. Who was this woman?

"Yes I think you do."

"Have we-"

"Go on take a guess." Suddenly it hit me. I was staring at my beloved friend, Meg Giry. Meg and I had grown up together in the Opera Populaire. At one point we danced side by side bright and starry eyed. I ran to embrace her.

"Wait it can't be! Is it-"

"Yes!"

"Oh my god I can't believe it's you!" She pulled back from my hug to look at me.

"Look at you Christine, regal as a queen and beautiful." I looked at Meg. She was wearing a small skimpy bathing suit with blue polka dots on it. I never would have imagined innocent little Meg in such a costume but as I looked up I could see her face beaming with pride. She had grown to be such a beautiful woman and her smile was contagious.

"Meg and you as well, I could hardly tell it's you." We hugged once more, so extremely excited over the reunion.

"**My dear old friend, can't believe you're here old friends.**"

"After all this time."

"Christine you came! You look sublime!" I looked at my dear friend.

"You look the same."

"**My sweet old friend, didn't think we'd meet again.**"

"What of your career?"

"Everything's great!"

"**And isn't fate a splendid thing!**"

"It brought me here."

"To see the sights?"

"And sing!" As soon as I said the words I wished I hadn't. Meg's face fell and she turned to hide it a moment too late. Suddenly there were girls all around me giggling and asking for autographs. I tried to reach out Meg and ask her what was wrong but the crowd surrounding me was too thick to see through. After signing many autographs the crowd dispersed. I turned back to Meg.

"Sorry did I hear you right? Here to sing?"

"Tomorrow night-"

"That seems weird there must be some mistake. That's the leading lady's spot. I've been booked-" And then I realized what Meg was saying. Eri- Mr. Y had booked me over poor darling Meg.

"Oh surely not."

"This was meant to be my big break." She fell onto the rehearsal piano's bench clearly broken by the day's change in plans. I sat down next to her and put my arm around her trying to reassure her.

"Look, I hardly sing, just one little thing, and aria." She looked up at me with tears threatening to spill from her eyes.

"Christine, it's a thrill just to share the bill with you. My dear old friend, it's becoming clear old friend, someone's overlooked his leading act." I pulled her into another embrace. One of the stage hands asked us to move from our spots at the piano's bench. He moved his ladder closer and we quickly jumped out of his way. The man he was working with left him to come talk to me about my singing. As I looked up from the sheet music we were discussing I noticed Raoul talking to Madame Giry. He looked very angry and stressed out. I was worrying for him and for Madame Giry. I rushed quickly to his side before anything could happen to her.

"Darling, please are you alright."

"Tell me now this music, who was its creator." He grabbed my wrist with so much force I thought it would snap. As Madame Giry's gazed slid down to his grip on me I suddenly felt self concicous and embarrassed of my husband's actions.

I looked into his eyes and whispered, "Darling, please don't squeeze so-" But he quickly cut me off.

"Something's going on here. I'll deal with you later." He threw my arm down and turned to storm out of the tent. But he suddenly turned back to me. "The truth will out before we're through." It was almost a threat and it made me shutter. He walked past me to Meg. And Madame Giry came to where I stood. I found comfort in her old familiar, and very knowledgeable, face.

"**My dear old friend, can't believe you're here old friend.**"

She pulled me close but something about her was rougher and more aggressive than I remembered. "My dear Christine."

"What does this mean?" I heard Raoul from behind me asking Meg, "What does he want." I turned to comfort him.

"**My grand old friend, I don't understand old friend." **Madame Giry and Meg both turned to me.

"Maybe it's joke"

"Some silly game." For some reason I found myself trying to comfort them as well. But I didn't believe for one second that a man that could kill so he could get his way, would set up some silly old game.

"**And what his game is in the end, I can't claim to comprehend, old friend**" Suddenly the room started to get smaller and the stress was making me sweat.

"I need some air."

I heard Raoul's voice to my left, "I need a drink." I turned to comfort him. I couldn't stand when he got upset because of me. I also couldn't stand the embarrassment I suddenly felt for him. But we both ended up turning to Meg and Madame Giry.

"My poor old friend, isn't this a poor old end."

I turned to Madame Giry and tried to tell her I was okay. I guess I was hoping that if she thought I wasn't nervous that she wouldn't be. "I'm still, at bay." As I turned from her to go to Meg, Raoul passed me and glared into my eyes, muttering, "I'm feeling used."

Meg grabbed my hands and spun me around singing to me.

"**And yet let's not get upset old friends.**"

Madame Giry tried to comfort everyone. "We can sort this out."

Raoul murmured, "I'm sure we will."

Meg reassured him, "Without a doubt."

"**Because we're still such grand old friends. Grand old friends with everyone. Isn't this great?"**

"Won't this be so much fun?" Meg's bubbly spirit got to me and my nerves began to disappear.

"**With two old friends just a ball and two old friends**." We were holding hands and the tension began to slip away.

"Let us raise a glass." Madame Giry lifted poured everyone a glass of scotch.

"To times gone by." I feeling of dread washed over me as I saw Raoul pick up his glass. Meg and Madame Giry were calming though.

"To Mr. Y." I knew the words slipped out in anger but everyone turned to looked at Raoul who had brought up everyone's source of anxiety and frustration again.

Meg shook of Raoul's words and sought to comfort everyone. "To happy ends."

We all broke from our shock and anger towards Raoul's words to finish the toast. "**To such sincere, and very dear old friends.**" Everyone looked down at their glass before setting back down on the table without a single sip.

"No offence but I need something stronger." And with that Raoul turned to leave for the bar. I rushed after him.

"Raoul…" He turned back making sure to only address the Madame Giry and Meg.

"Madame I shall see surely see you at the concert tomorrow. Where I am sure you both shall surpass yourselves. Good day." And turned and left.

"Raoul… Please. I can explain!" I couldn't help but raise my voice. I turned around blushing embarrassed for both of our behaviors. "I'm sorry. Meg would you mind, Gust? Gustave!" I was so confused and frustrated with the things happening around me I forgot about Gustave. He was nowhere in sight. He's disappeared here on Coney Island. Vanished! Meg looked at me confused.

"What's wrong?"

"My son! He was with… Gustave?! Gustave!" I ran off looking for my son. I could hear footsteps behind me followed by Meg's voice calling my name. She finally caught up to me behind the stage.

"You have a son? What?" She was trying to gather her breath along with her thoughts. I slowed my pace so she could keep up.

"Meg, my son, Gustave is missing. If Er- If Mr. Y finds him… Oh God!"

"Christine, it's okay. He's not like he used to be." She stopped walking and stood looking in the distance. "He's kind Christine. I can see how you fell for him."

"I did no such thing! I have a husband! How can you say such things?" I was so flustered with my feelings for Erik. I couldn't admit them let alone except them. But what did she mea… _Oh my God_! I knew there was something about Meg… Something different… Something strange. Meg Giry my childhood best friend had fallen in love with the love of MY life. I stopped and planted my feet where I stood. How dare she! Erik was the father of my child! The love of my life! How dare she have a single loving or even adoring thought about him! It was HIS music in MY hands. I doubt he would ever trust her with such an honor! I shook my head. What was I thinking! Erik left me. He wasn't ready to love me or my child. Erik hadn't been a part of my or our child's life for 10 years. Why was I so angry at Meg? Erik wasn't mine anymore. Erik hadn't been mine since the day I chose Raoul in the lair. And he couldn't be no matter how many times I told myself.

My eyes adjusted back to reality. The anger from my body drained. I could see Meg's confused expression but I pushed out of my mind and turned around continuing my search. "Meg, I do not have times to discuss such things with you. I need to find my son." We looked through the entire main tent coming up short. We then ventured on into the freaks' quarters. There we found no sign of my darling Gustave. As we walked out of the backdoor I fell to my knees and began to cry. How could he just disappear. My darling boy. Oh I wished Erik and Gustave could have met 10 years ago. I wished Gustave would have known a loving father instead of Raoul. I wished that Gustave could have grown up in a house of love and a house of music, place he could have been himself and not been yelled at and put down for who that was. Suddenly I heard a scream but it wasn't any scream. It was the blood-chilling scream from my boy's mouth. I got up and wiped my face in one swift movement.

There's something about when a mother's child is in need. A mother's instincts take over and she finds herself standing right in front of her child moments later. I ran and ran and didn't know where I was going but I knew who I was going to. When I reached my destination I yelled for Gustave and felt the instant comfort when his arms wrapped around my legs and his head buried itself into my waist. I grabbed his face and kissed him on his forehead. He kept murmuring something over and over again. Once I pulled his face out of my waist I heard the words.

"It's horrible, horrible." I pulled him back into my embrace and hushed his cries.

"Shhhh. Don't be frightened." Suddenly a voice came from behind me. Erik. A shiver ran through my body from hearing voice.

"How could you think I wouldn't guess?" I turned and Gustave ran behind my back. Erik walked towards me. He was clearly angry. His shoulders were hunched over, his wig was gone but his mask was in its place. "How could you think I wouldn't know? Do you have something to confess? I want the truth right now if so…" He was hurt and upset and I wanted to hold him and tell him everything was okay. Gustave was beginning to pull me away by the arm. Everything became clear. Erik realized the truth and showed his true face to his true son. But that face must have scared poor Gustave. I turned to Gustave then.

"Listen Darling, I want you to with Miss Giry back to the hotel. Alright? I have to talk to Mr. Y alone. Meg?" As I turned I saw Meg walking towards Erik attempting to reach out to him. He was hiding himself from her yet she tried to comfort him. She was attempting to show him that she accepted him. "Meg! Please would you mind? Please? Please?" She reluctantly turned towards me and took Gustavé's hand. I thanked her as she walked away. I turned back to where Erik was. He didn't show a bit of anger. He only looked hurt and betrayed. "Once upon another time you loved me, yet left me alone. But that's not all you did. You left me with a son." Hearing those words he fell to his knees and began to sob. "Ever since that other time I wished that you could somehow have known. I kept the secret hid, the secret my marriage forbid. What else was I to do? We love…"

"A son…" his voice cracked through his heavy sobbing.

"We love…"

"My son…" He was so hurt. He hunched over.

"Just give what I could give and take what little I deserved." I walked over to him and gently placed my hand upon his scared head. I could feel his pain as it traveled up through my arm into my soul. He placed his hand on top of mine and brought it down to his soft cheek.

"Forgive me." The words were barely audible through his sobs. But they were strong enough to make me jump and devastatingly sad enough to break the last intact part of my heart. "He sees me and shuns me, as you did once. Take him now, take him and go." I couldn't wrap my head around what he was saying. But I understood why the words came from his mouth. "Go now. Be free, but swear one thing to me. He will never ever know." There was nothing for me to do. Gustavé's fear of his father would just be a sword finding its way deeper into Erik every time he saw Gustave. I couldn't allow that pain in Erik's life, but how could I deny him the happiness and love a child brings to their parent. I had to do what was best for Erik. I had to do everything he asked for him.

I turned to leave and whispered the words as I left, "I swear it. Believe me, you know you have my word." And then I stopped. There was one thing on this earth that I could offer Erik, one thing that would bring him eternal joy. I turned back to him and gave him my soul, "And I swear this music won't remain unheard! This music, your music will live again, one last time just as I swore." He stood and looked at me. I could see the love fill his face. I picked up the music I had dropped when Gustave ran into my arms. I leaned down and picked it up and walked back to him handing it to him.

"**And soul to soul we will once more be whole.**"

"When I hear you sing…." The power in his voice was overwhelming and I fought the urges within me as they crept up.

"Once more." And with that I turned and ran from him before they could get another chance to overpower me.


	12. The Power Angels have over you

You know what they say, there is no better time to think then when you are running from the man who stole your heart through a freak show on Coney Island to the man who you never truly loved.

How could he just… How could I just… I couldn't explain what had just happened. Erik wanted Gustave and me to leave. He couldn't see a future with us. And that crushed my soul to an unfixable extent. He was probably running into Meg's arms, Meg's uncomplicated arms. He held no responsibility to her. They had no child together. Life with Meg would be simple. And there I stopped. That was my wrong doing, I should have fought harder for Erik that morning. I should have gone to Madame Giry and demanded to see him. I should have slapped the stupidity out of him for thinking my love for him would end from the sight of his face. I should have… I should have… Nothing! There was nothing I could have done. Gone back in time to shake my waking self before he left? That was impossible. I couldn't change the past. But I could change the future… But even I knew I couldn't do that either. I was married to Raoul now. I had a child whose father believed would never be accepted by him.

There was nothing to be done. I had to just make it through today and tomorrow. I made to make it through the performance tomorrow night and then I had to leave the man I loved once again. I had to endure the pain of not being with him. I would have to endure the dreams of being with him and waking in another man's arms. I would have to endure the life Viscountess De Chagny instead of Mrs. Christine Y. How could I do that? I had survived Raoul's torture for years, but there was something about leaving the man I loved once more that cut me deep. That would be a wound that could never fully heal. I wanted to be with Erik and hold him in my arms. I wanted to feel the silk of his sheets every night for the rest of my life. I wanted to feel his lips on my throat and his hands around my waist. I wanted to sing for him and watch his smile glow in the darkness. I wanted to be the sunshine that shone through the clouds on his darkest days I wanted to rip off his mask and hold his face so close to mine that our noses would touch and we could sit breathing each other's air. But most of all I wanted to be his. I wanted to feel his heart beating inside of my empty chest once more.

When I finally got to the doors of the hotel I leaned against the wall and wiped away my tears. I controlled my breathing and fixed my reflection. When I finally pulled myself together I walked into the hotel with a fierce determination. I didn't know what to do. I didn't know what I should do. But I knew what I need to do. I needed to be with the man I loved. But how could I raise a child who was scared of his father? I knew better than Erik though. I knew that after time Gustave would accept and love his father as I did. He would easily find Erik's beauty underneath. We could be a happy family. As I reached the door to my room, I could hear the most beautiful melody escaping through the wood paneling. I unlocked the door and turned the knob. Sure enough Gustave was sitting at the piano playing with the same fierce determination I had as I climbed the stairs. Meg sat on the floor by the piano clapping away at the music being played. When Gustave finished he stood and boweed and laughed. Meg picked him up and hugged him close to her.

"You certainly have your mother's skill of music."

I couldn't help but to mutter under my breath, "That most definitely is not from me." Meg must have heard me for she turned and jumped at the sudden new presence in the room.

"Oh hi Christine. Gustave was just indulging me in his music abilities. Where did he learn to play like that!?" I smiled down at my handsome son. He smiled proudly at his talents and ran off to his room to find some toys to play with. The sun was setting and it was beginning to get late. The day seemed to have passed by so quickly today.

"Gustave it's time you got dressed for bed." He peeked his head out of his room and groaned. "Now, Gustave. I'll be in in a minute." I turned back to Meg and led her into the small kitchen where I made us a pot of tea. I quickly hid away Raoul's old empty Vodka bottles below the counter before she could see. "Gustave started playing when he was four. He has had no teacher. He picked it up himself."

She looked at me with curiosity. "Perhaps he was visited by that Angel of Music you always used to talk about." I choked a laugh back. If only she knew. I poured two cups of tea and we sat down in the small parlor of the room. "He's so talented. He makes me think of Erik. He's so amazing when he plays. I've never actually seen him play but I can hear his master pieces when I walk past his office. There are so… so… well they leave you speechless. She giggled into her cup of tea. The anger and jealousy overtook me once more and before I knew it I was shooing her out the door, telling her that I needed to get ready for bed. She looked so hurt and confused. That had been the first time since we had some alone time together, but I really had no interest in hearing about her little schoolyard crush on Erik. I walked back into the parlor and picked up the tea placing it in the kitchen. I tucked in Gustave and then I slowly walked to my bedroom and dressed for bed. Hoping that the dream wouldn't appear wasn't strong enough. As soon as my head touched the pillow I fell asleep.

I soon found myself in a spinning room. I was looking for someone. People in weird costumes swirled past me. I was getting so dizzy. Suddenly there was a loud bang and I fell and kept falling down a tunnel of darkness reaching out to touch someone, but not just anyone. The spinning stopped along with my falling and a hand reached out pulling me from the darkness. My vision was blocked out and all I could see was light. I was an overabundance of light and it hurt my eyes. But I heard two distinct voices. The first was Erik and the second was Gustavé's. That had been the first time I could hear the second voice clear enough to tell who it was. But the words were still a dizzying mess. What were they saying to me? I jumped up right in my bed and I could feel my nightgown stick to me. It was drenched in sweat. I slipped out of my bed and walked into the bathroom. I turned on the bath and slipped out of my nightgown. I sat in the water for what felt like forever. Suddenly to cold arms encircled me in the tube and I could feel someone's breath on my neck. Erik's voice filled my ears begging me to wake up. I looked around but I didn't see anyone. Suddenly the water was red and I found a whole in my right side. I fell out of my bed and hit the floor with a hard the pound of my body. I ached all over and was terrified of what I had just dreamt of. I quickly lifted my nightgown and felt for any wounds. There was nothing there. I looked around in the darkness of my room. I whispered Erik's name and when there was no reply I let the dream drift out of my mind and I got into bed and fell back asleep.

When I woke in the morning the first rays of dawn hit my face. I stretched my arms out and quickly felt the bruise on my left shoulder blade. It had been a wound from my encounter with the dream world. I lazily got up and dressed for the day. I knew that this would be my last day with Erik. But sadly he had a show to prefect and I had a family to hold together. I couldn't go and run around with the man I loved today. I had to be a mother, since apparently the "father" never showed up from the bar the night before. Gustave and I had a large breakfast together and went for a trip to New York City. We shopped for hours there until the dread hour arrived and I returned to Coney Island.

My dressing room was backstage in the biggest tent. It was beautiful and elegant. It felt like me. Erik must have made it just for me hoping that one day I would return. I was getting ready and Gustave was helping me. I turned from the mirror to face Gustave who sat at my dressing table. I was dressed like I had been the night Erik had first appeared to me in the flesh. I was wearing a slip and corset with my white lace robe over it. My hair fell down my back in cascades it was longer past my shoulders almost a third of the way down my back.

"Gustave, could you hand me those earrings? The sapphires on the left." I turned around so he could see how me entirely. I was only missing my gown now. The stage manager had yet to deliver it to me. I had no idea why it wasn't just sitting in my dressing room beforehand ready to go. "Well how do I look?"

"You look so beautiful, so very beautiful. Like a queen in a book." I laughed and placed my perfume on my head to look like a crown. I was starting to feel bad for the childhood that Gustave had to suffer through. He was stronger than I ever could dreamed he would be.

"You too are beautiful, so very beautiful. Once this performance is through, we'll spend some time just us two. Won't that be fun?" He laughed and I pulled my son close to me. Suddenly the door opened and Raoul walked in. He looked so stressed and tired and yet he looked so very handsome it was hard not to appreciate his looks.

"Father doesn't mother look lovely tonight?" Raoul looked from Gustave to me and smiled.

"Indeed she does. As lovely as she looked the very first time I came to her dressing room door." It was words like that that made me feel awful for that one night beneath the moonless sky.

"And look at you Raoul you look just like that handsome boy in the opera box the one who would always toss me a single red rose." He gave me a half smile and then looked to Gustave.

"Please Gustave, if you don't mind, would you wait outside awhile?" His tone of voice confused me. Gustave pouted a little and looked at me then at his father.

"But when's mother going to sing? I don't want to miss it." I could tell there was something on Raoul's chest. Something he had to tell me.

"Go and wait backstage my dear. Soon papa will fetch you there. You can both watch from the wings." Gustave cheered up and ran out the door. I sat at my dressing table. Raoul turned and closed the door. He came and stood at my side.

"Since our wedding day, things have gone astray." I couldn't believe that he was bringing this up now.

"Raoul…" He didn't let me finish.

"I'm not proud of the way that I've acted"

"We've both been…"

"The demands I've made, all our hope mislaid, I'm aware of the price they've exacted. Though I've no right to ask you to, there's one more I'd have you do. If you love me, as I love you…" Something about Raoul was off. Where was all of this coming from? Why was he being so sensitive and loving?

"Anything dear."

"Don't sing the song dear." What did he have against me singing

"What? But…"

"You have to know that something is terribly wrong dear."

"But I have to do this, it's what we agreed to." I pleaded with my eyes hoping he would understand.

"That hell spawn demon, he's had us playing his game all along dear." Then I remembered, it wasn't my singing, it was the music. Raoul was trying to tear away all of my connection to Erik.

"Let me just get through this listen please I need to." If I was going to leave the man I loved once again for Raoul, I was going to need proper closure. We both would. We needed this song. Raoul knelt on his knees before me.

"You need so much, it's true, and I've denied you. You need the man you knew, back here, beside you. You have him back I vow, just ask it of me. But we need to leave here now, if you still love me." How could I say I loved him? Had I ever? Maybe I had once, but I couldn't lie and say I still had. He had been so cruel to me how could I return to such a life. And yet, what if he did return to his old self? What if he was once again the Raoul I grew up with? Erik wanted to me to leave and Raoul's offer of our old life was tempting.

"But darling I'm due on stage in 10 minutes how can I possibly aban…" He cut me off.

"I beg you please, please. I have passage for three to Sureberg on the Atlantic Queen it leaves tonight. Let's be on it for both our sakes, and for Gustave. Leave this place behind." He stood from where he knelt and took my hands in his, pleading to me with his eyes.

"Go and find Gustav. Tell the stage manager not to disturb me. I'll need some time." He pulled me up into his arms and kissed me so passionately. I was a kind of love and passion I hadn't felt since the night of the Masquerade Ball at the old Opera Populaire. Maybe it could be like it had been before. I prayed to God that things would change. He dropped my hands and ran off backstage to give my message to the stage manager. I pulled off my earrings and laid them on the dressing table I turned to leave. I grabbed the door knob and tried to turn it but it was jammed. No, not jammed, but locked. As soon as the familiarity hit me, a cold breeze sent shivers up my spine as every light in the room dimmed.

I knew who would be there when I turned. Still unable to control myself around him, I turned and there before me stood Erik.


	13. The Choice Between Love and Death

He began to walk towards me. His movements were slow and graceful. I stumbled backward trying to break our eye contact but his eyes were so beautiful and made it impossible. And then he opened his mouth and his beautiful deep voice filled the air. And I tried to fight against its beauty. I fought for Raoul and the future we might be able to have together. And I also fought for myself. I couldn't give in to him again when I would be leaving hours from now.

"You know his love is not enough. You know isn't what you need. You know you're made of finer stuff. I think on that we'll all agree." I froze where I stood. What was he saying? What did he want? "It's time to leave him in the dust." I heard my voice catch. Was he asking me to stay with him? Was he offering a life with him? Were we finally going to be a family? I- I- I didn't know what to say. I gave into the music and. "It's time to be who you should be. It's time to do now as you must and set the music in you free." Suddenly he turned and gestures to the mirror on the wall. "In moments, mere moments, drums will roll. There'll you'll stand just like before." I could feel the old rush I got from singing as it began to rush through my veins. I walked closer towards Erik and the mirror. "The crowd will hush and then in one sweet rush. I will hear you sing once more." Suddenly his arms were around me and he placed an elegant and over the top huge blue diamonded necklace. "And music, our music, will swear and then unwind," He turned me around toward the dressing table and I couldn't but walk towards it and sit down. "…like two strands of melody that must entwine, will fill us, complete us, make us whole." I felt my body fall into the chair. He leaned forward from behind the chair and picked up the earrings I had just taken off. He gently picked up my small hang in his large one, I couldn't help but notice how perfectly it fit in his, and he placed the matching blue diamonded earrings into my hand, closing it around them. "Sing upon forever more. Tonight for me, embrace your destiny, let me hear you sing once more." He began to walk away from me. As his hands slipped off of mine I couldn't help but lean into his direction. Suddenly he was gone. It was almost as if he had never been there. Thinking it had been a dream; I looked down and at the base of my throat still sat the necklace. He was so fascinating in his magical ways.

The stage manager yelled to me and warned me of my remaining five minutes. What was I to do? Who was I to choose?

"They stay every way. What answer can I give? I know I can't refuse and yet I wish I could. Oh god…" Should I follow my heart and stay with the man I would always love? Or should I go after the man I had already betrayed and hurt enough, the man I was married to? How could I cause such an innocent man such pain? Sure he had changed quite a bit, but his change was because of my past actions. I couldn't hurt him again. But could I hurt the man I loved again? Why did it always come down to my choice? Suddenly Raoul's voice filled my head.

"Christine, Christine, don't think that I don't care." Oh god what would my leaving do to him? When I married him, I promised him my love and presence forever. How could I betray him. Maybe it was Raoul I had to stay with…

"But every hope and every prayer rests on you now" Erik's voice whispered in my head like it always had. I had heard his music every day for ten years. I knew the reason why. We were tied together soul to soul. He own part of my soul while our soul owned the other. I had no power over my heart and I knew I did not have any to properly give to Raoul. How could I stay with a man I could never love? Was that right?

And then I decided what I would do next. I turned around and saw my dress hung upon the mirror. It was a beautiful deep rich blue. The tail of it resembled a peacock's. It was extraordinarily extravagant. It was the most elegant gown I had ever seen in my entire life. It fit me perfectly and the entire inside was made of silk. It felt so enticing against my skin. It made me want to crawl under the cover of Erik's bed and never come out again. The walk backstage was nerve wrecking. All of my old insecurities came crawling back in under my skin. I wanted to make Erik proud I wanted him to pull me into his arms and tell me he loved me. But was that the best choice to make.

I shook the thoughts from my head. I wasn't making that decision yet. My best thinking came when I was singing and I was hoping that I would become inspired by the music and that the right choice would just come to me. I needed to sing! As they announced my name i pushed through the curtain and entered the stage. The lights poured onto me and then I could feel the crowd's anticipation. All fears and doubts drained from me and I could feel the joy and rush that the stage gave me.

"Who knows when love begins?" Whose heart would I break tonight?

"Who knows what makes it start?" Could i dare to do such a thing?

"One day it's simply there," I suffered for ten years?

"Alive inside in your heart." Oh Erik…

"It slips into your thoughts," Ten years you were the only thing in my mind.

"It infiltrates your soul," You are my soul…

"It takes you by surprise," How couldn't I have seen it before!?

"Then seizes full control." I just don't know what to do.

"Try to deny it," How could I ever deny my feelings for Erik.

"And try to protest," But maybe I'm making the wrong choice.

"But love won't let you go," I should think of what Gustave would want.

"Once you've been possessed." But what if I go with Raoul? My heart isn't going to heal.

"Love never dies." I'm going to have to live with the regret of choosing Raoul again.

"Love never falters." My love for Erik isn't going anywhere!

"Once it has spoken," It's…

"Love is yours." Ah! I can't do this!

"Love never fades." I could feel eyes from the wings. I turned to my left and found Raoul staring at me with such a defeated face around them. There was something he wasn't telling me and I could see it in his eyes.

"Love never alters." How could I put him through the lies once more?

"Hearts may get broken," He wasn't Gustavé's father and he never would be.

"Love endures..." He was never going to be loved my me.

"Hearts may get broken," Maybe it would be even worse to hold onto him when I didn't love him. He should be able to move on.

"Love endures." I turned to my right as the music flowed through me and saw Erik looking at me with such pride that my broke my heart.

"And soon as you submit," How could he love me so much?

"Surrender flesh and bone," I wasn't as young as I used to be and not as talented.

"That love takes on a life much bigger than your own." I had hurt him so many times before.

"It uses you at whim and drives you to despair." How could they love me so much?

"And forces you to feel more joy than you can bear." Suddenly the words I was singing sank into my core. This song, this beautiful song was written by Erik during that time when we were both lost.

"Love gives you pleasure," He was the one who got me through my father's death.

"And love brings you pain!" We both hurt one another and it made us stronger.

"And yet, when both are gone," And it also made our connection stronger.

"Love will still remain." I needed him.

"Once it has spoken," He needed me.

"Love is yours." We both needed each other for our own survival.

"Love never dies," Suddenly the decision was made.

"Love never alters," The music pulled me in and his love engulfed me once more.

"Hearts may get broken," I could feel the strength in my voice as I realized my future.

"Love endures..." It was Erik. It would always be Erik!

"Hearts may get broken." But how could I explain this to Raoul.

"Love never dies!" I turned towards Raoul. He must have picked up on my choice because I caught the pain on his face as he turned to go.

"Love will continue!" The decision was made and I felt free. Suddenly every stress that Raoul had ever given me released from my shoulders and I was swept away by the music. I hadn't felt such passion from music since- since- since _Don Juan Triumphant_.

"Love keeps on beating when you're gone!" And like that all of my thoughts bubbled away and I just sang my heart out and I loved every moment of it.

"Love never dies once it is in you!"

"Life may be fleeting,"

"Love lives on..."

"Life may be fleeting,"

Love lives on."

When I finished bowing I turned and ran backstage to my dressing room. I felt so wonderful. The power of the music still pulsed through my veins. I was living on a pure adrenaline. I ran into my dressing room and through the door closed. Erik stood on the other end of the room.

"Ah, Christine, my Christine. What a triumph you gave me tonight. My Christine, all the dark silent years now put right. Ah, Christine." His voice ran through my ears and set every nerve in my body alight.

"The song was beautiful. It sounded beautiful, every note, every word. And it felt beautiful. And I felt beautiful" I walked towards him and his eyes locked on mine. Man, what those eyes did to me.

"**Lost in the music once more. Feeling it rise up and soar. Alive once again!**" I gave into him and he pulled me close. Our lips touched a bolt of electricity ran through my body sending chills to every limb and raising the hairs on the back on my neck. He had such an effect on me. And right now he had total and utter control over me. His lips were softer soft than I remembered and they made me want more so I pulled him closer. In my haste, I bit his bottom lip and he groaned in pleasure. His hands fell from my shoulders to my waist. I could feel my nails clawing at his jacket hoping to find skin. My lack of Erik was clouding my judgment. It felt like an addict finally using their drug again after ten years. It felt so nice. The thought suddenly crossed my mind that we could wake up in each other's arms every morning for the rest of our lives. I broke from the kiss and put my head on his chest. I was flooded by the fluttering of butterfly wings in my stomach, the warmth of his body, and the beating of his heart. My body knew what it wanted and it would only be moments until it would get it.

Suddenly Erik's body tensed. I looked up to find his glaring down at my dressing table. I followed his gaze to the single piece of paper resting below a single red rose. It wasn't anything special of a rose, no black ribbon, but an average rose with rips in the petals. I knew it was from Raoul. I ran to the note and picked it up gingerly in my fingers. I may not have loved him but I adored him as a close childhood friend. The words were written in haste and sadness. My heart broke as I read the words allowed.

"My dearest wife,

Little Lottie, I beg you, forgive me." I couldn't help butter cry out to him, "Raoul, no!" I continued to read through the tear forming in my eyes. "Little Lottie, ah, what fools we once were, long ago in our youth, in Paris at the opera. Romantic idiot. Those two people are gone. Now I must go. Our choices are made. The opera is done. The last notes have been played." Poor Raoul how could I be so cruel to him. "May your angel of music watch over you now and give you what I wish I gave you somehow.

Yours, in regret

Raoul" Wow. Raoul had grown so much as a man tonight. Gustave would be proud to of had that Raoul as father. Gustave! How could I have forgotten my son! I got so caught up the choice I- "Gustave!" Where was he? What if Raoul had- no he couldn't! NO, he WOULDN'T!

Erik broke from the shock Raoul's words had put him in. "What is it?" I ran to the dressing table and threw down the letter.

"What's wrong?!" Erik ran to my side.

"I told him to wait for Raoul before he asked me to…surely he wouldn't." We both turned and ran for the door.

"That fatuitous Raoul! I will kill that drunken fool, that he dare take this child, a child that isn't his" I didn't have the nerve to try to calm Erik. Instead I just ran after him as he stormed around backstage trying to find Raoul. Suddenly Squelch appeared at his side. Squelch looked scared and he was sweating through his costume.

"Sir, The Viscount de Chagny left here alone. Saw with my own eyes sir. There was no one with him. Was there anyone else here backstage?" He looked worried and my mothering anxieties intensified.

"Madame Giry, she was here with that viscous little sneer and that comment she made. The ungrateful back biting snake. Go now, quickly, bring her round, bring my boy back safe and sound. Then I'll make that vixen pay" Squelch turned and ran away as fast as he could I ran to Erik's side and put a soothing hand on his chest while hiding my tear stained face in his jacket. His body relaxed into me as much as it could. Our boy was still nowhere to be found. Suddenly I heard footsteps and turned to see Dr. Gangle and Squelch dragging Madame Giry back to Erik. She seemed to be angrier than scared, which I didn't understand. I guess people around here were forgetting his dark side.

"What is the meaning of this?! How dare your circus gools…" Erik pulled out of my grip and walked towards Madame Giry. I could see his body shaking with anger.

"What have you done with him?" She looked up at him in shock and worry and then she looked over his shoulder at my crumpled up form.

"The boy! You think I took the boy?! Why would I do such a thing do you think I don't know who he is?!" Of course she would know. Madame Giry had eyes and ears everywhere she knew everything! Suddenly Miss Fleck came running up to Erik. She was terrified and shaking.

"Sir! I just passed Meg's dressing room. It was silent as a tomb. But her mirror was shamed all in pieces on the floor." I ran to her and fell to my knees in front of her questioning her of everything she knew. I heard a quiet voice from behind me. The voice belonged to a distraught Madame Giry.

"God, I left her so distraught. God knows what she must have thought. Foolish child she must be caught." I looked up to Erik shaking his head. He ran off to find more information.

"My boy, Gustave!" Madame Giry came to my side and put a reassuring hand on my shoulder.

"But she won't hurt him. Meg would never hurt him." I couldn't tell if she was trying to convince me or herself. Suddenly Erik was at my side pulling me up off of the ground.

"I know where she's going but we must hurry!" I looked up into his face and found nothing but fear and horror.


	14. Love Never Dies!

We were running now. Erik was running through the tents and people of Phantasma I had no idea where he was going but he had my hand in his and I was willing to follow him to the end of the world. My lungs were beginning to heave. Each breath of oxygen stung my lungs as I forced my lungs farther and farther, faster and faster. Everything around me was a blurry mess through the tears that wouldn't stop filling my eyes. What if something bad happened to him?

I found myself in a spinning room. I was looking for Gustave and Meg. People in weird costumes swirled past me. I was getting so dizzy. Something about it felt all too familiar but I pushed the thoughts aside for the moment and focused on Gustave. Suddenly I realized we were leaving Phantasma. He took a hard left and the sound of our feet changed. I looked down and realized the stone and grass changed to wood. I looked around and found us on the boarding dock in front of Phantasma just left of its entrance. Erik stopped quickly and I wiped away my tears. Suddenly I was aware of everything around me. I heard Madame Giry's breathing hitch and I saw Erik's hands fly up in defense. I glanced over his shoulder and saw Meg holding Gustave at the edge of the pier. I could hear my own voice screaming over the chaos. I could hear Erik's soothing, yet threatening words and Madame Giry's cries of pain. Gustave couldn't swim and I could hear his terrified squeals for me.

Meg turned to see the three of us staring at her. "Not another step! Not another word. Always wondered how to make you watch. Well watch me now!" Her face was distorted in a terrifying way. I could see that my childhood friend had disappeared. She seemed to be almost possessed. Suddenly something in her click and she stood up straight and prepared herself for offense. "I took a little trip to Coney Island. I took a little trip because of you." She looked down at the water and I could see a tear fall from her cheek. "I did as mother said and followed where you led and tried to do what little I could do." Suddenly her head snapped back up to glare at Erik. I could hear his heart pounding. He was dazed and confused and the most frightened I had ever seen him. He had lost every bit of composure he usually had. He had stepped in to father mode and I wasn't sure how long ago that had been. Perhaps it was once I discovered Gustavé's absence. "But here's the way it works on Coney Island, they make you pay for every little crumb. I gave what they would take; I gave it for your sake." Her humanity began to show through once more as she began to cry. "Now look at me and see what I've become. Bathing beauty on the beach. Bathing beauty in her dressing room. Bathing beauty in the dark, on their laps, in their arms, in their beds!" From behind me I heard Madame Giry whimper out Meg's name.

I, myself was shocked, but I couldn't imagine how it must be for Madame Giry to find out that her daughter had prostituted herself because of her and Erik. Oh and poor darling Erik! He never would have meant for that to happen. He was probably full of self-loathing.

"And who kept singing, desperate for your favor? Who kept dancing, hoping you would save her? Who kept dying? And this is all you gave her!" She pulled Gustave up into her arms and I heard him and everyone else around gasp and take a step forward. She turned around to face us with her hands still on my son. Suddenly she let him go and he ran past Erik and into my arms. I was confused. Something wasn't right. There was more there had to be. Where was the boom? The boom? Suddenly everything clicked this was what I had been dreaming about since my pregnancy with Gustave. But why? And Gustavé's first nightmare when we had gotten to Coney Island? 'What a dream, an awful dream. Someone strange and mad seizing me and drowning me.' What did it all mean? And why was it coming to us in our dreams? What was about to happen. I grabbed onto Erik's jacket. Suddenly Meg grabbed a gun out of the skirt of her dress and aimed it at her own head. "Now that I've got your attention at last. Here's the big finish and then you can go." Madame Giry ran forward begging Meg not to pull the trigger. Erik held her back. I knelt on the ground and held onto Gustave. Erik was blaming himself for everything. Everything after that seemed to happen in slow motion.

I saw Erik take a step towards Meg and extended his hand. He began to sing to her in a soothing hypnotic voice. "Give me the gun, Meg. Give me the hurt and the pain and the gun, Meg. Give me the blame for not seeing the things that you've done, Meg. Give me the gun, Meg. Give me the chance to see you clear at last." And she repeated his words in as an empty echo. Her voice was hauntingly detached. "You feel ugly, you feel used. You feel broken, you feel bruised. Ah, but me, I can see all the beauty underneath." He took another step closer to her as she agreed with what he was saying. "You've been robbed of love and pride, been ignored and cast aside. Even so, I still know, there is beauty underneath." He took another step closer when she agreed with him once again. "Diamonds never sparkle bright if they aren't set just right. Beauty sometimes goes unseen. We can't all be like Christine." I stood up at the sound of my name. All of the serenity and calmness drain form Meg's face and it twisted once again with anger and frustration.

"Christine? ALWAYS CHRISTINE!" Suddenly there was a loud boom. It was the one I had been waiting for. I grabbed my right side and wobbled forward to make sure Erik was okay as he checked for any wounds on himself. I was feeling dizzy and so I grabbed the railing. It was sturdy and so it collapsed, letting me fall to the ground. I looked down at my hands and saw the blood. I could hear the screams around me and I could feel the struggle for breath. I could feel the warm stickiness of my dress as the blood began to soak it. I could smell and taste the blood as it reached my mouth. I could feel Erik's hands as he pulled me into him. I could hear and see everything but the shock seemed to chase away any pain. But I could feel my body shaking because of the shock. Meg was apologizing as she was dragged away by her mother. Erik was yelling at them to get help and darling Gustave was laying on my lap. His sweet tiny voice blocked out all others.

"Mother dear, say something, say anything!" Suddenly he looked up and all around himself. "Father! Where's Father?" He got up to find Raoul but I grabbed his hand quickly and found my voice.

"Gustave, your father…" I choked out the words but was cut off by Erik.

"Christine no!" I looked into his face and wiped away the single tear that sat on the very tip of his nose.

"I know. I promised. But you are all he has now. He has to know the truth."

"Christine please." Then he looked at me with understanding eyes as he realized that it was my dying wish. I turned back to Gustave.

"Your father, your real father is here." He looked up at me with shock and horror.

"No, No!" I placed my hand on his cheek and began to sing to him to calm him. The shock was beginning to wear off and in its place came the pain.

"Look with your heart and not with your eyes. The heart understands. The heart never lies…" He started to back away from me and then turned and ran. Erik and I tried to go after him until the pain over took me and I fell. Erik caught me effortlessly. He looked down at me as the tears came thicker.

"Once upon another time, our story had only begun. I had a taste of joy, the most I ever knew. Now there isn't any time and somehow our story is done. And what about the boy? What am I to do?" I looked up at him and placed my hand on his cheek. My thumb lightly traced his lips. How could I have waited so long to have kissed them again? How could our story end when I had kissed him so little?

"Just love, just live and give what you can give and take the love that you deserve." I looked into his eyes as he let out another sigh.

We sang together one for the last time. "Just love, just live…" Suddenly a deep cough came from my throat. I could feel the blood trickle from my mouth. He leaned down and wiped it away.

"…And give all that I have and take what little I deserve." I couldn't stand to see him in such pain.

"Come closer, I beg you." He leaned down towards me, but he still felt miles away. "Closer still." He fixed his positioned so that I was lying in his lap and he was hunched over me. I pulled his head down to me a whispered in his ear. "Remember, love never dies. Kiss me one last time." And he pulled my face to his and gave me the tenderest kiss he ever had. He finally broke down ever wall he put up against the world. I could see every part of him but then suddenly the pain took over.

I soon found myself spinning and I was getting so dizzy and so tired. I felt heavy and drowsy. I was ready to give into the dark. I started to fall and I kept falling down a tunnel of darkness reaching out to touch someone, but not just anyone. The spinning stopped along with my falling and a hand reached out pulling me from the darkness. My vision was blocked out and all I could see was light. It was an overabundance of light and it hurt my eyes. But I heard two distinct voices. The first was Erik's and the second was Gustavé's.


	15. A Grand Awakening

I woke up to a room full of light. I couldn't see anything and it was incredibly quite. I found the source of the light. It was a large opened window shiny directly on my face. I lifted my arm to block the sun out. My arm felt heavy and it took to much effort to move it I almost decided to go back to sleep until I saw the room I was in. With the light block my eyes adjusted to the room. The walls were made of a tan rock giving the room the feel of a cave. Sheet music crowded the large black grand piano in the corner opposite of the bed I laid in now. The bed! It was made around me, so that I was completely tucked in. The bed was covered with black silk sheets and black silk pillow cased pillows. The pillows were fluffy and made from the best goose down, I imagined anyway. Well some things never changed. This was Erik room and this was Erik bed. His scent clung to the sheets and I snuggled closer to them. Suddenly a sharp pain ran through my side. I groaned in pain and tried to grab my side stopping only when I saw, through the lace nightgown I wore, the big bandage covering my side. Suddenly the bed moved and I looked to my right and saw Erik's exhausted head pop up.

Erik crawled on to the bed and gathered me up in his arms, being very careful not to cause me any pain. He was crying and I lifted my hand to wipe away his tears. He held my hand to his face and we just sat there staring into one another's eyes without saying a word. Erik and I didn't need words because our souls were so closely woven that we understood one another's silences. He rocked my back and forth and sobbed into my hair. Suddenly a sickening feeling came to my gut. I looked up at him.

"Where's Gustave?!" I couldn't hide the octave jump in my voice. I was so worried about our son. Erik looked up at me with innocent eyes.

"He's with Squelch, Fleck, and Gangle. I didn't want him here if anything, if anything-" He couldn't finish his sentence because he was crying so hard. I grabbed his face and ran my hand through his hair hushing him into silence. He stopped crying long enough for me to pull him down to lie beside me. I pulled his face to mine and kissed his as hard and as long as I could until I winced in pain. He suddenly broke away from my kiss to make sure I was okay. But the pain from the bullet whole wasn't too bad. What hurt the most was the idea of dying without kissing him as much as I wanted to. What hurt was not telling him every second how much I loved him. What had truly killed me was the idea of never being able to look into those eyes and melt into this embrace again.I pulled his face back to mine and let my finger find the buttons on his shirt. He quickly pulled back.

"I'm not sure that this is the best time for-" I stared back at him without even the start of a blush on my cheeks.

"It's the perfect time for it!" I grabbed his face in my hands and brought it level to mine so I could look into his eyes. "Erik I almost lost you forever! I almost lost you before I told you I loved you!" I could feel the tears fill my eyes and I didn't dare to brush them away. I buried my head into his shirt and breathed him in. I felt the warmth of his chest and I could feel the bare skin, where I had successfully unbuttoned his shirt, against my ear. "I need you Erik and I want you. Here and now and always." With that he pulled my head towards his and kissed me hard. He placed my hands back on his buttons and his fingers gingerly found the bottom of my night gown and carefully pulled it off. We stayed in bed together for the rest of the day, just basking in the bliss of holding each other in our arms. I was amazed at the way our skin tingled whenever it touched, the way my body fit perfectly into his embrace the way our lips melted together when we kissed. We were one and we were meant to be together forever. I couldn't get over the beauty of the way he whispered 'I love you' in my ear or how gentle he was with me because of my wound. When I begged him for more he gave just enough to satisfy and never too much to hurt my side. I couldn't get enough of the way his hot breath tickled my skin. I couldn't resist the feeling of his lips on my collar bone. But most of all I couldn't fight the urge to rip of his mask and kiss every inch of his scared face.

There was something about Erik and me that was so easy. There was never any pressure to look a certain way or to be a certain person. We didn't have to worry if we were doing something right and since that night ten years ago Erik made sure to keep his temper in check. There weren't any more walls separating us either. This day was just exposing our true selves to one another and finding the joy as the other accepted who that was.

Erik was helping me slip my nightgown on when there was a small knock on the door. I looked at him and smiled. I knew who it would be and so did he. He gathered his clothes, which were all over the floor now, and went into the bathroom to get dressed. I slowly got out of bed and opened the door. My wound didn't hurt as badly as when I woke up and I now had full control of my limbs. I opened the door to find a troubled little boy looking up at me. When he realized that it truly was me and not trick he wrapped his arms around my waist, just barely missing my wound. I kissed his head repeatedly and held my son to me. Erik came up behind me and nodded at Gustave. Gustave nodded back and smiled. Erik chuckled and walked out of the room, leaving us alone.

I pulled Gustave over to the piano and placed him on its bench. He automatically started fiddling with the keys. Then he looked up at me and grinned. "How do you feel Mother? Father said you would need rest and so I waited. I've been playing with the performers here! They are so very kind, Mother! I can't wait for you to meet them, but Father said you would need to stay in your room for a few days after you woke from your long sleep." I looked at him confused. I had been so caught up with Erik's body I forgot to ask him how long I had been asleep. What all I missed? Gustave and Erik were smiling at their inside jokes and Gustave was calling him Father now…

"Gustave how long was my sleep?"

"Um… about three weeks Mother. I missed you so much!" He through his arms around me and held me tight. I pulled my son close and stroked his hair.

"Oh darling I missed you too! I dreamed of you every night!"

"And Father?"

"Why of course I did. How is your father? Has he been treating you right?" I tapped him lightly on the tip of his nose.

"Oh yes mother! He is going to teach me all the ways of Phantasma. And every night when you were sleeping he taught me more about music!" He leaned over the piano and grabbed a thick folder and opened it. Inside I recognized both Erik and Gustavé's handwriting. I couldn't but tear up at the thought of both of my men playing and writing beautiful operas together.

"What's the matter mother? Is everything alright? Do you hurt?"

"I'm fine Darling! I'm just so happy that you connected with your father so quickly." He chuckled for a moment. It was a younger version of Erik's laugh and I was shocked to find that I had never heard such a joyful noise come from Gustave. He leaned in very close to me and whispered in my ear.

"He's just like me mother! We dream the same dreams and see the same things. He understands and accepts me mother!" I shuddered at the way Raoul had forbid music from our home. But when I looked over I couldn't help but smile at the happiness that filled my child's face. Just then Erik walked in.

"I think it's time your mother got some sleep Gustave." He turned and looked at me. "She could use some rest. She's had a very busy and tiresome day." And then he winked at me. Both of them were the happiest I had ever seen them and it warmed my heart. How could I ever have had any doubt in my choice?

I looked back at Erik and challenged him. "I wouldn't say that it was too tiresome. Everyone seems to be extra gentle with me, much to my dismay." He smiled and walked over to us. He scooped me up in his arms and brought me to the bed. He tucked me in to bed and whispered in my ear.

"I'll be better tomorrow." And then he turned away but he didn't get far before I grabbed him and pulled him back. I pulled his head down to me and my response in his ear.

"It was beautiful and amazing and I thank you for today." Then I turned his face so it was facing mine and I kissed his lips and whispered into his how much I loved him.

"I love you too." This he said aloud and he kissed my forehead and went to the piano bench, taking a seat next to Gustave. Immediately, they began playing beautiful harmonies. I lay back on my pillow and quickly realized how true Erik had been. I was exhausted. I was sound asleep moments later dreaming of a land where we were picnicking on a hill together with unearthly melodies filling the air.


	16. Scars can Heal the Broken

**Sorry I haven't been writing I've been busy with theatre things. But hope you like the next chapter. Read & Review please. WARNING: Following chapters may contain material rated M.**

The night air was freezing cold and woke me from my loving dream. I pulled the sheets closer around my body. My quick movements led to a piercing pain in my side. I let out a short sharp cry of pain and felt warmth cover me. Erik's arms were around me in minutes. I could feel his warm breath on my ear as he whispered to me frantically.

"Darling are you alright. Christine?" His voice was weak and hoarse with distress. The room was covered in the night's blackness but when I turned my body, very carefully and slowly, I could see Erik's face in the moon's illuminating rays. His eyes were full of worry and his brow's displayed the pain he had in his heart. I could feel his hands trembling on my back where they held me. I pulled his lips to mine trying to calm him. I knew that he still blamed himself for the whole on my side and it troubled me deeply. How could such an amazing man be cursed to live a life of such cruelty? Who would ever damn him to a life of darkness he never deserved.

I could feel his stress float away as our lips touched. My hands fell from his face onto his shoulders and slid down his back. I pulled his body closer to mine and I felt him give way. He laid down next to me and melted into my touch. All I wanted was to have him in my arms and to shower him in my love. I wanted to kiss away his thoughts. I knew he was imagining Raoul and Meg. They both had disappeared after the incident. Of course Raoul had nothing to do with it but I knew the Erik couldn't help to worry about his future plans of vengeance. I pulled away from him suddenly and looked into his eyes, black in the light of night.

"Calm down Love. All is finally right. Our lives are perfect. There is no need for you to worry." His arms realized from me and he sat up. He buried his head in his hands that rested on his bent knees.

"How can I stop worrying when you have a hole in your side, a hole that I caused? How can you stand to look at me Christine? I tore apart your family. All I do is ruin everything I touch. How can I raise your child? How can you trust me to? What if he turns out to be just like me?" I sat up and held in my cries of pain. I sat at his feet and pulled his hands from his face. I forced him to look me in the eyes.

"I hope he does to turn out like you Erik." His eyes filled with disgust.

"A hideous monster?!" Before he could look away I grabbed his chin with my fingertips.

"No. A beautiful man who can find the beauty in anything and everything. A talented angel of music that fills people's hearts with unearthly melodies. A creature of light that is stronger than anyone I've ever known. A man who can find his way out of pure darkness and still possess such love." He scoffed at my words and pulled his head out of my hands.

"A man who murders innocents?" I pulled his face back and could see as his tears were beginning to fall.

"Erik, that's not who you are anymore. You were a lost soul once. You were treated as animal in a cage as a child. You were tortured and yet you found the strength to base your life in love. You aren't nor were you ever darkness. You have always been my light. You treated me with so much care when my father died. You helped when no one else could. You were the one that inspired my voice. You have always been good. You are an amazing father and I pray to God that Gustave turns out to be at least half the man you are. Do you think I can't see the tenderness and love in your eyes when you see Gustave? You love him more than anything the world could offer." I pulled his chin forward and kissed his lips softly. I heard him sigh and felt his lips pull into a smile. He pulled back and looked me in the eyes.

"Not everything." And then he brought my lips back to his. His lips floated down to my collar bone and his right hand slid down to my waist, his left rested on the side of my upper back above my bandage. I let a single moan and my head fell back. I let out a quiet chuckle. I'm sure he enjoyed the effect he had on me. He pulled me onto his lap and pulled me close. My left hand crept up to the mask that rested on his face. I gently pulled it off and set it on the bed behind me and pulled his face of my collar bone and kissed his face delicately and felt him shiver in pleasure. His grip became stronger as he pulled me closer until my chest was on his. He found my lips and kissed me with such an intense passion. His lips were sweet and soft, leaving the feeling of flower petals as they slipped down my neck. My hands slid down his chest and found the first button on his shirt.

"You aren't in pajamas. Do you even sleep Erik?" I felt him chuckle into the nape of neck. He pulled back slightly to whisper to me.

"Sleep? Who has time for sleep when they have the beautiful Christine Daae in their bed?" I grinned at his response and quickly returned my hands back to their work on his shirt. His mouth became hungrier for my skin. After 3 buttons my trembling fingers got frustrated. I pulled on his shirt and heard as the buttons released themselves from the fabric and tumbled to the floor.

"Well Christine!" I blushed at his response. My actions when I was near Erik never seized to surprise me. He had an astonishing effect on me. His body drove me crazy. It was becoming addictive. I pulled shirt from his body and let it fall to the floor. I couldn't fight the shivers that ran through my body as my fingers grazed his bare chest. I could tell he was enjoying my response chuckles fell into the skin his lips rested upon. I could feel his finger as they searched for the bottom of my nightgown. Moments later his fingers were pulling the hem over my head. His pure perfection left me to feel so self-conscious about my body. He must have noticed my hesitation. I felt his lips at my ear.

"Miss Daae, you are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen." I couldn't control the moan that fell from my lips. The combination of his voice, the warmth of his breath, and the feel of his skin touching mine was making my mind go fuzzy and driving my body insane. I wanted him so badly. I need him just as badly. His fingers traced my spine and then I lost the small bit of self-control I still had. I woke to the feeling of his strong arms around me and his lips on my shoulder. The sun's rays fell on my skin making warm. My insides were warm and fluffy but as I turned to face him I could feel the pain of my side. I bit my lip and held in my squeal of pain. I met his loving brown eyes and felt my heart melt.

"Good morning Beautiful." He kissed me delicately on the lips. He made me so happy. How could I have ever doubted my feelings for him? He wrapped his arms around me and pulled me into his chest. My hands rested on his chest. I could get used to mornings like this. Then suddenly Gustave fell into my mind.

"Where is Gustave?"

"He is learning the ways of Phantasma. Since the accident he's been working with the different acts. He's enjoying himself and making new friends. There is no need to worry Christine." I missed seeing my son all day.

"I want to watch him explore your domain." He chuckled but then sighed.

"Christine you must heal. Give it a week. Until you are healed you must rest Christine."

"Uh! But what am I to do in bed all day for that long?" And then I felt the blush rise to my cheeks as my brain thought of a few ideas. He must have felt the heat on my face because he looked down.

"Christine, are you okay?"

"Mhmmm."

"Christine why are you blushing?" I buried my face into his stomach. "Christine?"

"I was just thinking of the ways well… the ways that um… you could… um the ways you could keep me entertained."

"Oh." I was drowning in my embarrassment. Suddenly he pulled my face to his. "Well I'll see what I can do." And he kissed me with so much intensity. Luckily he hadn't redressed from last night so didn't have to deal with any buttons that day.

By six o'clock I was panting trying to catch my breath. I was covered with sweat and my muscles were so sore and tired. Erik made me a bath. He finally took off my bandage. It was the first time I had seen my wound. It was an actual hole in my side. The bullet had thankfully hit a rib just barely missing my lung. The bleeding had been bad. But thankfully Erik knew enough about the human body from his past experiences with death that he quickly got the bullet out, stopped the blood, and stitched the hole (thankfully he had a very large medical kit in case a performer got injured). Erik had saved my life. The wound didn't look so bad. I was small and swollen. There was a little dried blood and thin black medical thread closing the wound.

Seeing it for the first time I shuddered. There were so many painful thoughts attached to that bullet. He saw my distress and pulled me in close to him.

"I'm so sorry Christine." I placed my hand onto his cheek and looked into his eyes.

"This is NOT your fault Erik! Stop blaming yourself!" I wiped away the tear that fell onto his cheek. "Meg was tormented by her past and almost killed herself. Don't you ever forget that YOU saved her. And then after I was shot YOU saved me. You saved two lives that night Erik! You are my hero." He looked at me and I could see that his eyes held the sadness of the world. I placed a kiss delicately on his scarred cheek. He shook his thoughts out of his head and helped me into his white porcelain bathtub. As he turned to leave, I grabbed his arm. He looked back at me and I could see that his dark thoughts had crept back into his mind.

"Aren't you going to join me?" He gave me a very pitiful smile and got into the bathtub with me. He placed his arms around me and we sat in silence in the warm water. The water was beginning to get cold and my toes were becoming wrinkly. Reading my mind he got out of the water and got me one of his big fluffy old towels. He helped me out of the water and wrapped it around me before getting one for himself. Once I was dry he put a new bandage on my side. The water soothed away the pain and rid my body of its aching and drowsiness.

"Um, Erik?" I looked around confused. He appeared at my side somehow already dressed.

"What's the matter darling?"

"Where are my clothes?" He looked at me shocked at my question.

"Oh yes I guess we'd been busy I haven't given you a tour." I was very familiar with Erik's bed by now but I had no idea of where anything else was besides the bathroom and piano. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to the wall. "Well this is a closet for you, my Christine." He placed his hands on the rock that jutted out of the wall and pressed it. Suddenly the wall seemed to open. I walked inside of the hole and found myself in a very large walk- in closet. But the room didn't look like a dark cave. The walls were made of the same rock, but they were smooth and flat. The ceiling had a small replica of the chandelier at the Opera Populaire. The room was long and it took at least twenty steps to reach the shelves of jewelry on the back wall. Every rack held expensive, elegant gowns. Some I recognized as my own, others I did not. The shelf held beautiful shoes or amazing jewelry. But like the clothing most of it wasn't mine.

"Whose stuff is all of this?" He looked at me with an expression of amusement.

"Did you really believe, my Christine, that I would let you live here without giving you everything I possibly could?" I turned to him and laughed at what he said. He was so good to me. I walked down the racks and looked at the beautiful clothing. I quickly changed into a beautiful nightgown. I continued my journey looking at the back shelves. Erik came up behind and placed his hands on my shoulder.

"Where did you get all of this Erik?" I turned and looked up at him. He looked at me and shrugged.

"Some I bought others I made. Did you think I ever doubted that you would choose me over Raoul? I've been preparing for your arrival for a while, I guess." I stood on my tiptoes and kissed him. I wish I could have been so sure of the choice ten years ago in his lair. He turned me around and faced me to the shelf once more. He then pointed to a small black leather box directly in front of me. It was in the middle of the shelf. "Do you know what that is?" He lifted his hands up off my shoulders. I picked it up and turned to ask him. When I turned he was down on one knee. "Now that has belonged to you for over twenty years. That has been yours since the day I first saw you, my Christine, along with my heart." I opened the box and inside it sat a small delicate ring. It had a silver band with a small white diamond surrounded by tiny little black diamonds. Somehow there were various thin, delicate black and white metal strands that flowed around the diamonds encaging them. It was the most stunning, intricate things I had ever seen. The metaphor wasn't lost on me either. The white represented me and he was the black. The ring's setting represented us finally being together and being wrapped in our love for one another. I couldn't stop the tears that flowed from my eyes. I didn't dare touch the ring. Everything about it looked so dazzling and so delicate. I was scared that if I touched it that it would fall apart. "Christine I am so deeply in love with you. I need you now and for always. Would you do me the honor of becoming more than my muse. Miss Christine Daae, would you become my wife and make me the happiest man to ever exist?" I couldn't find my voice. I shook my head up and down vigorously. He smiled and stood. He took the box from my hand and put the ring on my trembling hand. He pulled me into him and kissed me so hard. It was overwhelming. My legs gave way and he caught me in his arms. He laid me on the bed and held me in his arms. Suddenly Gustave came running into the room. He jumped on the bed.

"Did you ask her father?" I heard Erik chuckled.

"Indeed I did." He looked down at me. "I hope you don't mind but I asked Gustave if he would allow me to ask you." He wiped away my tears and I finally gained the control of my body and of my tear ducts. Gustave looked at me with worried eyes.

"Oh Mother didn't you say yes? Don't you love Father?" He had misinterpreted my crying.

"Oh Darling of course I do. I'm crying because I feel so overwhelmed with love and joy. I haven't felt this happy since God gave us you." I brushed the hair out of Gustavé's eyes and let my hand rest on his cheek. Erik grabbed and held my other hand, my left hand.

"I hope you like the ring." I looked down at it. It fit my finger perfectly but it also fit my hand perfectly. It wasn't over the top like Raoul's had been. It was tiny, it was just perfect. And it was amazing how well Erik knew me and what I liked.

"I love it Erik." His face beamed and I leaned into him and kissed him. "And I love you, Erik." My family was finally together. My perfect family.

"Father, can we play now? I have had a song in my head all day!" Gustave looked at Erik with excitement and hope in his eyes. Erik let me go and stood. He picked Gustave up from the bed and set him on the ground.

"Of course Gustave!" And I fell again once more listening to the enchanting music of my two boys.


	17. Life After The End

I woke the following morning from a peaceful sleep. My skin was warm and the air was filled with beautiful music. I gathered my strength and sat up. Erik was sitting at his piano skillfully running his fingers over the keys. His brows were arched in concentration as he played the notes that ran through his mind. He stopped momentarily and scribbled the notes on his sheet of paper. But he quickly glanced up and looked at me. He looked away suddenly aware that I had been watching him play.

"I'm sorry Darling. I did not realize that you were awake." He rose from the piano's bench and came to sit at my feet on the bed. I crawled out of the covers and into his lap. I lifted my left hand up to his masked cheek. But before I could kiss him something caught my eye. The beautiful ring that sat on my ring finger made my heart swell with joy. I pulled his face to mine and kissed him hard. How could I have ever deserved such a loving man? His arms wrapped around my waist causing me to cower in pain as his arm touched my wound. He pulled back quickly. "I'm so sorry Christine! Are you alright? I didn't mean to- Are you alright?"

"Erik, I'm fine. It's okay." I grabbed his hands and put them back around me, carefully placing them above the tender place on side. I put my hands on his face and pulled his lips back onto mine. His tenseness started to leave him as his kissing became more intense. The passion was becoming too intense and I had to pull away to catch a breath. His lips moved down my neck. My mind started to float into the future. "When are we going get married Erik?" He pulled back and looked at me his eyes thoughtful.

"Oh I hadn't really thought about the date. Well, sometime after you are healed, of course." I looked back at him and nodded.

"But of course."

"Well when would you like to have it?"

"As soon as possible! I can't wait to finally be yours Erik." He kissed my neck tenderly and whispered into my skin sending shivers up my spine.

"As have I, my Christine."

"You don't understand how many nights I've stayed awake yearning of just being here in your arms. Yearning to hear your voice and touch your skin. Oh Erik." I began to cry because the thought of not having him was to unbearably heartbreaking. I buried my head into his should hoping that it would absorb the tears into non-existence. I hated reminding Erik of those dark days.

"Shh. It's alright Christine. That is in the past. There will never be a day that I will stop regretting my choice. I promise that I will never leave your side again." I pulled my head up and he wiped away my tears with the sleeve of his soft shirt.

"I love you Erik."

"I love too Christine, now and forever." He gently kissed my lips and just then just held me in his arms.

Moments later there was a knock at the door and then everything was silent.

"You may enter." Erik's booming voice filled the room's silence. The door opened and four heads popped in from behind the door. Squelch, Fleck, and Gangle quickly shuffled into the room, followed by Gustave.

"Father, I was just wondering if Mother would be allowed to see the new act that we have concocted." Gustave looked into Erik's eyes with all of the hope he had in his little tiny body. I knew that that look would be too much for Erik to deny. And as predicted he turned to me.

"Well, how do you feel my Christine?" I tested the aching of my side and its rawness. I couldn't feel any sharp pains, just a low throbbing. I looked at Erik and then at little Gustave and smiled.

"I'm fine, Erik. I would love to see what you have been working on darling!" Gustavé's smile covered his face from ear to ear. I could tell how proud he was of his work. I rose from my bed carefully with the help of Erik and Squelch. I started to walk out of the room before Erik stopped me.

"Perhaps you would like to change darling. I know it has been a while since you have joined the rest of us in the real world but…" I looked down and noticed what I was wearing. I was bare foot and had on a very sheer nightgown. I blushed and looked up at Squelch and Dr. Gangle who quickly looked away.

"And perhaps you are right. Will you excuse me?" All three men, Fleck, and Gustave nodded their heads and left the room. But Erik quickly returned thinking I would need his help to get dressed. "I am absolutely okay! I have been dependent on anyone Erik and I do not plan are starting now." He nodded and turned to leave. I grabbed his hand before he left and kissed the inside of his palm. "Although, I am very dependent on your love, Erik. You mean the world to me, just remember that." He kissed my forehead and then left. I picked out a very simple yellow sundress from the racks and found its matching white floppy hat a few moments after. I slipped on a white pair of sandals and left the closet. Erik was sitting on the bed waiting for me.

"You look as radiant as ever my Christine." The way he said my name sent chills through my body and I wanted to kiss him so badly. But I knew that if I was to make that fatal move I wouldn't be able to stop myself. Instead I curtsied to him and walked over. I laced both sets of my fingers in his and pulled him up. This time he made the move. He placed a small kiss on my lips and pulled back quickly before I could return the favor. "Shall we go?"

"We shall" And I pulled one of my hands free from his and held on tighter with the other. He led me to the door and opened it for me. Outside Fleck, Gangle, Squelch, and Gustave leaned against the wall excitedly whispered their ideas for the show. They looked up at me and I could see their mouths drop. No one had seen me so dressed up and healthy looking in weeks. The color in my face was returning. I was able to stand on my own. And I was finally wearing clothes that weren't nightgowns. Gustave ran and threw his arms around me, throwing me off balance and hitting my sore side. Erik caught and righted me quickly and he very discreetly moved Gustavé's arm lower on my waist. Gustave released me and grabbed my left hand. Erik took hold of my right. Gustave started to pull me down a long hallway. There were about eight various doors along the walls of the long hallway. Each door led to a different room and each room had a different door. One of which was opened. That door was white and wood. It led to large powder room. The door beside it was made of a light brown oak. But if you looked closely you could see that there were music notes in the grain of the wood. Beside that door was a light blue stained door. Then we passed a white door and a black door and other various mix match doors all leading to other worlds. Finally the end of the hallway came. It emptied into a large parlor filled with grand furniture and a black metal staircase spiraling downward into the floor. Gustave led me towards it. We began to descend down the stairs. I found that we were now on the ground inside of the largest "tent" in Phantasma. This building held the stage where the main performances were held.

Gustave pulled me to a seat in the first row. I sat down with Erik seated to my right. He looked over at me and grinned. I leaned into his shoulder. Gustave, Fleck, Squelch, and Gangle jumped up onto the stage. There were two large pieces of colored fabric hanging from the ceiling. Miss Fleck grabbed the piece to the right and began to wrap herself in it with Gangle there to spot her. Gustave took the left one with Squelch there to spot him and followed her motions. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen in all twenty-seven years of my life. The fabric seemed to slow with them as if they were underwater. They floated through the air and wounded themselves up and down in the fabric. I looked over at Erik and found him staring proudly up at our son.

"So this is what he's been doing in his time?" He tore his eyes away from Gustave to look back at me.

"Yes. He is quite talented. He picks things up very quickly."

"Yes, well we all know where his talent comes from. You are quite amazing yourself Erik."

"Thank you Christine for blessing me with such a boy." He kissed my forehead.

"It was a team effort." I squeezed his hand and we both turned back to Gustave. He was untangling himself from the vast amount of fabric. He jumped off the stage and ran towards us.

"So what did you think Mother?" I pulled him onto my lap and stroked the hair out of his eyes.

"It was so beautiful Gustave! I am so proud of you my darling!"

"Thank you Mother. Did you like it Father?"

"It was quite impressive young Gustave." Gustave beamed at the compliments he was hearing. He jumped off of my lap and kissed me.

"I have to go mother or I will be late for my next lesson."

"And what would that be?"

"Fleck is going to introduce me to one of her cousins. They are going to teach me how to fit in a box!"

"Oh goodness then you mustn't be late!" He turned and ran after the three employees making their way out of the building. I turned to Erik. "He seems to be enjoying himself. You know he wanted to come to Coney Island for months now?"

"Yes well he is very good at seeing the beauty underneath." I kissed Erik. The feeling of being alone with Erik was overwhelming me. I couldn't resist touching him. He pulled me closer to him.

"I love you so much Erik."

"Just hearing those words Christine-" I cut him off with another kiss. But he pulled away quickly. "How well are you feeling Christine?"

"Well fine, actually. I feel no pain." He pulled me up out of my seat.

"Then would you like a tour of Phantasma? You haven't seen much of my new world here and I would love to share it with you my love."

"I would like nothing more." He walked me to the door. As he pushed the door open my skin was greeted with the warmth of sunshine. The air was warm and it had a fresh crispness feel that my lungs gratefully accepted. I hadn't been outside in what felt like forever. The grass was soft and made a gentle, satisfying crunch when I stepped on it. He pulled me further into the world. It was the first time I had ever seen him in the light of day. The way the light highlighted his facial structure made my heart leap into my throat. He was even more handsome in the light.

My beautiful Erik had finally made a life in the light and it suited him. He no longer needed to live below civilization. He no longer needed long black cloaks or masks. Of course, he found comfort in his mask. But maybe one day he would take it off and leave it for good. He was finally being accepted by the world. I felt so proud of him. After everything he had been through he grew to be an angel of music living in the light with the rest of the world. He embraced the beauty of everything when after years he had been tortured for the supposed ugly others saw on him. He overcame his dark past and evil deeds he committed and lived a life of saving others from the same life. He was a new and better man. He became a man that I loved more than anything in the world. He blessed me with a beautiful family and he inspired my voice and gave my life music after the abrupt death of my father. He gave me everything I have ever wanted and needed. He saved me. I couldn't wait to be his wife.


	18. Erik's Playground

**Rated M**.

He pulled me through the crowds that cluttered the pathways. He stopped at each game to show me how it worked and each prize. He face was glowing with pride for all of the worked he had achieved over the years. He showed me to each food stand and let me eat as much as I wanted. He pulled me through the smaller buildings that displayed a wide variety of freaks from all over the world. There was even a mermaid that had come to him from Scotland. After leaving the final building he draped his right arm around my shoulders and we began our walk back to the house. My mind began to slip away from where I currently was and back to the night I got the wound that was currently stabbing pain through my body. By the time I realized what I was doing I had already dragged Erik half way down towards the pier.

"Christine, I don't think that this is good idea. This isn't going to bring up any happy memories for you… or me." His voice faltered. The internal pain was slipping through the cracks of his façade. I stopped were I was and spun around to face him.

"I'm sorry, Erik I didn't mean to drag you down here. I was thinking about that night and just kind of ended up here." But my sorrow quickly changed into anger. "I'm not going to do this, Erik! I'm not going to stay hidden and scared because of one night! I can't do that! I will not let this one event rule my life. I have already let that happen in the past." His arms were around me in moments. His hands raked through my hair as his calming voice hushed my tears before I even realized that they were falling. He picked me up in his arms and carried me back to our room.

By the time he laid me down on the bed my tears had dried up. I needed to feel his warmth and his presence. I needed him to wrap me in his love. He understood my needs. He pulled off his jacket and hit the empty wall that was beside the bed. It opened up and I could see that it held thousands of sheets and blankets and pillows. So that was why his room was always so clean, because his walls were all secret storage. He pulled out a thick white blanket and wrapped it around me. He sat down next to me and pulled me into his arms.

"I'm so sorry Christine. I didn't mean to cause you so much pain in your life. I have done nothing but harm you Darling." I looked up into his pained eyes.

"Erik you are wrong. You have done everything for me. You have brought me more joy than I would have ever of thought possible. You have loved me more than anyone else in the world. And you gave me the best gift anyone could ever receive. You gave me Gustave, Erik. The only moment I would ever change in my entire life time would be the day I chose Raoul." He kissed me lightly on the cheek.

"Oh, my Christine." His breath was hot on my flesh and his lips were soft and delicate against me. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. Erik rose to answer it. When he opened the door Squelch was talking rapidly about a major problem with the show line ups. Erik nodded his head. He must have been used to the chaos. He turned towards me and I nodded my head. It was a simple gesture but it was a language that we were both attuned to. I knew by the look in his eyes that he was asking if I was okay and if it would be okay if he left to go handle the problems erupting everywhere. Erik knew that by the shake of my head I was telling him that I understood and that I loved him so dearly.

He turned to leave but ran back to place a firm kiss on my lips and then he was gone. What was I going to do without the constant company of Erik? I got up and closed the cupboard door that he had left open. And then it hit me. I would take a little tour of my own. I began by running my hands along the walls of our bedroom. Each wall opened to expose a secret room. In the bathroom behind the door led to the bathroom cupboard, full of towels and wash clothes and toothbrushes. In the bedroom, the wall that faced my closet was Erik's closet. I couldn't resist journeying inside and running my hands along his various shirts and suits. I took notice of each differently detailed mask. There seemed to be a mask for every occasion life could throw at you. His wigs were combed back perfectly resting on their own mannequin heads. But at the very back of his closet was a small box. My curiosity got the best of me and I opened it. Inside sat the infamous Punjab. I quickly closed the box and slid it below the last rack where I found it. I couldn't expect him to be completely rid of his past but I had been hoping.

Once the exploration of the bedroom was done I found myself wondering through the strange hallway of doors. The first door I came to was the white one that led into the powder room. The room itself was grand enough to be back at the Opera Populaire. The floors were made of a white marble. The walls were a deep red. Each piece of décor was gold. The towels were either a deep crimson or a rich gold. The room smelled of roses and lilies. There was a large porcelain claw footed bathtub in one of the corners. I walked out of the bathroom and ventured to the next room.

The door was a light brown oak with music hidden in its grain. When I opened the door my mouth fell open. The walls had thick black velvet hanging over them. The floor had a deep rich and fluffy dark purple carpet. The room was large and was almost empty accept for the large piano in the center of the room and the pipe organ set against the back wall. As I walked closer into the room I noticed the clunky lumps in the fabric. I pulled one of the curtains to the left of the rod it rested on. Behind the curtain were hundreds of different brass instruments. Each was unique with patterns carved into the metal. I recognized many of the instruments like trumpet and trombones, but many of them looked foreign. I pulled the curtain back in place and walked to the next curtained wall. When I pulled it back the wall was covered with, what appeared to be, every woodwind instrument ever made, except the clarinet which I knew was the one instrument Erik couldn't stand. It didn't have the capability of catching each intricate piece of the story that music told, as Erik would say. The next wall was covered with a large family of string instrument. The final wall was covered with various percussion instruments. It was obvious to me that Erik had been collecting instruments from all across the world. This was his collection that he had been working at for years. And the instruments themselves were above average. Each instrument had its own beautiful carving on it. Each one was unique and had to be extremely rare. I carefully walked out of the room afraid to break anything.

The next door I came to was made of a light blue stained wood. The room belonged to Gustave. Unlike Erik's room, it wasn't a dark cave. Gustavé's room was rather large. The left side of his room was carpeted in white and it contained his bed, which was perfectly made, a bedside table, with a lamp on it, dresser, and his closet, fully stocked. But the right side of his room was what caught my eye. It was raised up on a small level. The level was deep brown oak wood flooring. The walls that touched this level were made of pure glass overlooking the park and the ceiling above it was filled with skylights. It held a large black grand piano. It was obvious that Erik wanted our son's inspiration to be light. The piano and the floor that surrounded it were scattered with sheets of music. It was obvious that whoever was cleaning Gustavé's room knew better than to touch his work. It probably had to do with a past altercation with his father that they would never forget. I smiled to myself at the care that Erik put into designing this room. I turned and walked back into the hallway. The hallway was at its end. I had finished exploring the rooms on the hallway's right side so I turned and started in on the left. The door across from Gustavé's was made of a red cherry wood. The doorknob was crystal. I turned it and entered the room. It was completely empty. The entire back wall was made of glass that over looked the water and the floor had white carpeting that matched Gustavé's room, but there was no furniture or anything that made it unique. It was nothing but an empty room.

I quickly left the room feeling dazed and confused. Why would Erik have an empty room? I continued my journey to the next room. The door was a swinging door made of a dark brown bamboo. I pushed the door open and it exposed a medium sized dark brown and black room with a large rectangular table, a diner table. The table was a deep brown maple table with matching chairs set all around it. The table was set with a delicate set of white matching plates, teacups, and bowls. Each piece of the set had an intricate design of a gold vine weaving its way around it. The silverware were all silver with the same gold pattern going up from the stem of the utensil and blooming up into the head of it. I didn't dare touch anything. I was afraid I would mess up the pure perfection of the picture that stood before me. Against the right wall there was black swinging door. I went through it and it exposed a large elaborate white kitchen. The kitchen was cluttered with workers going about their business in their white uniforms. Everything in the room was silver and shined in the room's light. I followed the room to the white swinging door that led back into the hallway of doors. I turned and saw that from the hallway the door was white with a small round window in it. I walked forward to the next door. It was pure black and it gave me a thrill to imagine what would lie behind it. The walls were all black and the floors were made of a black marble. The ceiling though was made completely of glass. I could see curtain rods that ran the length of the ceiling. The rods held white curtains that could hold out the sun in the day and still keep the room bright enough to see. The room was clearly Erik's office for Phantasma. There were plenty of silver filing cabinets. There was a silver couch in the room's corner. In the middle of the room sat Erik's large silver desk. With two small black chairs in front of it and a large black one behind it.

I sat down in his chair and took in the scent of him. I could feel his presence envelope me. I could feel the pain that had clouded this room's atmosphere for years. From where I sat I could see the repeated scuff marks by the couch. The marks had been left on the floor by his shoes as he paced back and forth night after night, unable to sleep. On the right side of his desk sat a picture of me from my days in the Opera Populaire. Along with that photo were multiple newspaper clippings about me through the years of my life. The oldest was an article about my father's death. The youngest was of my arrival to America. On the left side sat a framed photo of Gustave and Erik exploring Phantasma together.

He could make my heart completely melt. I was so in love with Erik. I made my way out of his office and walked through the hallway's final doorway. It was at the very end of the hallway's long passage. The doorway was made of rock and there was set of double copper doors that sat within it. I walked through the doors making my way back into our bedroom. I was growing lonely and I felt strangled with all of the boredom that was quickly filling me. I didn't know what to. I lied down on the bed. I got up and walked towards the linen closet. I pulled out another set of black sheets and made our bed. I pulled a thin black comforter on top of the sheets and repillow-cased the pillows in a metallically gold fabric. I didn't know what else to do with myself. I figured Erik would be returning to me soon. I walked into the bathroom and filled the bathtub with burning hot water. It only took me moments to get used to the water's temperature and relax into it. My tense muscles relaxed and the pain burning in my side calmed itself. I washed my hair and realized how quickly it was growing back. I got out of the bathtub and pulled one of the big towels tight around my body. I sat down at the mirror and combed through my thick wet hair. Moments out of the water and my hair was already beginning to curl. When I finished I got up and walked to my closet. I pulled on a black bra and a pair of matching underwear. But my loneliness was swallowing me so instead of slipping on a nightgown I found myself back in Erik's closet. I slipped my arms through the sleeves of one of his black button up shirts. It was crisp and clean and smelled just like him. I buttoned it all the way up and then lied on the bed hoping sleep would overtake me quickly.

A few moments later Erik walked into the room. I was still wide awake attempting to count sheep to quicken my descend into the land of dreams. He walked in with his head bowed as he intently looked through the papers in his hand. He looked up and saw me lying on his bed in his shirt. A huge smile graced his face and he threw the papers down on the floor and began to walk towards me. His pace quickened with each step that he took. I kneeled on the bed anticipating the warmth and safety of his embrace. When he reached me his hands knotted in my hair and he kissed me. His lips were feverish and passionate against mine. My finger raked against his back pleading for him. His hands slid down my back and grabbed the back of my thighs. I flopped down onto my butt. He pulled me closer to him so I wrapped my legs around his waist. He picked me up and crawled onto the bed. He gently laid me down on a pillow and his lips moved down my neck. I quickly began to pull at his jacket. With his assistance, it finally released its grasp on him and fell to the floor.

He hands found the first button on the shirt I was wearing. As he skillfully unbuttoned each button his lips followed down my body. As he finished the last button he sat up his hands rested on my waist just above my underwear and just below my bandages. We turned and I was on top. He pulled the shirt free from my body and threw it on the floor. I was more than happy to pull at his buttons. But after a while my clumsy hands were still on the fifth button. Erik chuckled and finished the rest for me. I felt the blush rise on my cheeks. I had never met someone before that I yearned for so badly. I had never felt the urge to rip at someone's clothes before my first night with Erik. Erik was the only man I had ever met that could drive me so insane. Every fiber in my body yearned to feel his touch. Suddenly I was pulling at his under shirt, untucking it from his pants and ripping it off over his head. As I left my hands slide down to the belt buckle on his pants, he placed his hands on my face and pulled my lips down to his.

"I love you Christine" His words whispered against my lips and sent goosebumps all across my skin.


	19. A Stitched Family

The next morning I woke up to the warmth of the sun on my face and Erik's arms wrapped around me. His lips were against my ear humming beautiful melodies. I turned around to face his glory head on. He had already placed his mask on the scarred portion of his face.

"Good morning my angel." He looked at me and grinned and I couldn't resist the urge to pull that smile down to my lips.

I held his face so close to mine and whispered back, "Good morning my love." His grin stretched further across his face. His hands wrapped around my waist and pulled it closer to him. We stared into each eyes for what seemed like forever. I could feel that we were both enveloped in the pure joy of being able to wake up in each other's arms. I was the one to break the silence. "So, Erik, can we go out today, do something together as a family?"

"Well how does your side feel?" I looked down at the bandages that covered my side. I twisted and turned and felt nothing.

"It feels fine Erik. In fact it feels like it is just about healed. How much longer until you can take out those stupid stitches.

"Let me take a look." I happily laid back and peeled the sheets back. He leaned over my body and gingerly pulled of the bandages. When I looked down, the hole was nearly absent. In some places it was still scabbing and but most of it had turned to scar tissue. It had been almost a month since the night I was shot and wounded, of course, most of that time I was still passed out from the accident. It was only my fourth day since I had awakened from the tragic incident and yet I felt as good as new. I was also tired of staring at the same four walls that surrounded me now. He poked his head up to look up at me.

"Are you sure you are okay?" I nodded my head. "Alright." He rose from the bed and walked into the bathroom. He returned moments later with a small set of scissors, two rags, and a bottle of alcohol. He poured the alcohol on the scissors and one of the rags. Then he handed me the other towel with a forced timid smile. "Just in case it hurts." He then leaned over me once again. I turned my head away and bit down on the towel. I could hear as he made the cuts in the stitches. And then I felt the excruciating pain as he pulled each sting out of my skin.

I tried my hardest not to let him know how bad it really hurt. There was no point in making him feel as bad as I did. I felt the tears slide down my cheeks, the soft fibers of the towel, and the small rivers of blood that flowed from my side. He quickly and skillfully wiped the blood away with the rag in his hand. Once he finished pulling out the stitches he poured some of the alcohol onto the wound to clean it. The alcohol left a biting sting as he wrapped new bandages over the wound. When he was finally done I pulled the rag from my mouth and panted out my silent cries of pain.

He leaned down and kissed my forehead wiping the tears and sweat from my face. He left his lips linger as he whispered his deepest apologizes. I ran my hand through his hair and he laid down beside me wrapping me in his arms. And stayed like that until the stinging subsided into nothing but an aching. I wiggled out of his arms and walked to my closet. I hit the wall and it opened quickly. The light turned on as soon as the door opened and I walked inside. Erik followed behind me. He wrapped his arms around my waist and his lips left tiny kisses along my collarbone. He knew that it was the one thing that I found truly irresistible. I let my hands follow the rack until it landed on what I wanted. I pulled the bathing suit off of the hanger and slid it over my naked body. Erik looked at me puzzled. "What is my Christine planning?" I found the matching hat and grabbed it off of the tall shelf causing a sharp sting in my side. I lost my balance and fell into Erik bare chest. He caught me instinctively and held me until I found my balance once again. "Are you sure you are up to going out today darling?" I turned around to him and stomped my foot.

"Erik you have had our son to yourself for the longest time now. I want to be with my family instead of locked away in some tower. I love you but you need to let me live."

"I understand Christine. You need to enter the world of light once more. I can't keep you locked away in my lair of darkness. It is almost as if I have kidnapped you once more, forcing you into my own prison." I set my hands on his waist and stood on my tiptoes placing a small kiss on his nose.

"But you I'm here by choice. I love you Erik. I love you so much that it hurts my heart to be away with you for even a moment. My soul aches to be near yours. I've went to long without being with you and I don't want to waste a single moment of our family being separated." He smiled and swept me up into his arms. "Now do you have a bathing suit, Darling?" He gave me a mischievous smile.

"Well in fact I do, just in case I would need one in the future. Now what are you up to Christine?" I jumped out of his arms. I pulled him into his closet. The bathing suit stuck out from the rest of his clothes. It was indeed black and white. While he put in on I walked to bathroom to the mirror. I pulled back my hair and secured the hat on my head. I looked up to see Erik's reflection looking back down at where I sat. "Christine?" He was clearly amused by my sudden liveliness. I turned around to face Erik.

"We are going to finally teach Gustave how to swim." His eyebrows knitted it frustration as his thoughts began to flood his mind.

"Are you sure that's such a good idea?" I stood up and slid my arms around his waist. I stood on my tiptoes and looked deeply into his eyes.

"I'll be fine. But if it will make you feel better I'll watch YOU teach him from a nice dry spot on the sand." He sighed. I knew he was worrying about infections, cramps, and drowning. He took such good care of me that it was hard to not give in to his precautions.

"Alright, Darling." Before I knew it his arm swept up behind my legs and I was in his arms before I could even stumble towards the ground. He carried me towards the door of our bedroom before placing me back on the ground. I walked to Gustavé's room and gave it a light tap. He didn't answer and I realized why. Through the door came a very quiet, yet exquisite melodies and harmonies as he played and sang along to the most beautiful song I had heard in a long time. Erik came up behind me and put his arms around my waist pulling me into his chest as he whispered in my ear. "I see you did a little exploring." I spun around to face him. I could feel the faint blush reach my cheeks, but he didn't seem to notice it. "He gets it from you, yah know."

"You must be joking. He clearly was blessed with your genius. He has your hands you know. And he has your eyes, and your voice. He has so much of you in him, Erik."

"But thank the Lord that he has enough of you in him to create a better version of me."

"As if God could create such a creature without keeping it up in Heaven for himself. There is no better version of you. A better version of you would be too much good for humanity to handle." I stood on my toes and kissed his lips. His grip on my body grew tighter as he pulled me closer. I wrapped my arms around his neck and forced his face closer. He pulled away quickly combing his hair back in place. I stood there panting, out of breath, from the brief encounter with Erik's heart. He turned me around to face the door. He placed his hand on the brass door knob. Turning it, he opened the door and helped my stumbling self inside. I hadn't gained full control of my limbs yet and was still feeling a little dizzy from the kiss.

Gustave quickly looked up and stopped playing. It was an old habit from Raoul's days of parenting. He quickly realized who had entered and he gave a large grin. "Mother!" He ran to me and threw his arms around my waist burying his head into my stomach. I pulled his chin up so I could see his face.

"Oh Darling, why did you stop playing? You are so wonderful, just like your father!" Erik gave me a proud smile.

"I was just playing around. I haven't found quite the inspiration to write an entire song yet. I don't know it hasn't come to me, Mother. I have plenty of small pieces and parts though. Would you like to hear them?" He ran back to his piano and began to play the most intricate music that had ever graced anyone's ear. He quickly looked up to find approval. But he wasn't looking at me as he used to. He was looking at Erik.

"You have learned so much in these past weeks Gustave. I can't wait until you do find your inspiration. I would love to hear what you can really play while you're inspired to do so."

"Thank you Papa. Wait, Mother, why so?" He looked us over, confusion flooding his young face.

"Why Gustave today is the day you learn to swim! Now go find your swim suit so we can all go to the beach." He didn't even answer. His excitement led him to his closet and down the hall to the powder room in one swift blur of movement. Moments later he was standing before me dressed and ready to go and panting like a dog.


	20. Normality at its Finest

**Sorry the last chapter was so short I got cut short while writing because I had a list of things to do one of which involved buying tap shoes. And now I'm finding less and less time to write. Alright well here you go. Hope you like it. Read & Review.**

The sun softly grazed my skin. It was warm and soft and yet a cold breeze fell in the sky. I laid on a white blanket below a large black umbrella. I had on a large floppy hat that shaded my eyes from the sun's light so I was able to witness every detail of Gustavé's swim lesson. Erik was using a soft and comforting voice. He held Gustave in his arms proudly and watched him paddle around in the water. His words of encouragement were often disrupted by Gustavé's sudden bursts of laughter. Their faces beamed brighter than the sun's own rays. Erik was laughed in now time. It surprised me how even underwater his mask held to his face so tightly. Their happiness was infectious and I could resist the laughter for too long myself.

Seeing both of my boys happy felt like a beautiful dream that I refused to wake up from. For so many years I watched Erik hide in the shadows swallowed up by doubt, anger, and self-hatred. Gustave had been shy to be himself. He was quiet and shy all the time back home in Paris. And here both of them were playing on the beach in the sunlight laughing and joking and staring at one another with such love. After a while Erik got out of the water and walked up the beach towards me. Gustave stayed in the water and filled buckets of water.

"It is such a nice day out huh?" I looked up at Erik. It was such a weird thing to hear come out of Erik's mouth. Had he even known what sunlight was before coming to America?

"It sure is darling. I am glad that both of you seem to be enjoying yourselves." He smiled and leaned down to place a gentle kiss on my lips.

"I wish you could join us."

"I'm happy to watch." Gustave came tottering over to us with two small buckets in each of his hands. He set them on the ground in front of us and smiled up at me. "Ah! I see. Well I think that is a lovely idea, but I do not think that Erik knows how. Perhaps you would like to teach him." Gustavé's grin grew wider and he shook his head violently.

"But of course mother!" Erik looked up and me curious and slightly worried as to what I had just signed him up for.

"Erik, Gustave wants to teach you how to make a sand castle."

"I have indeed never made one, Gustave." He placed his hand on Gustavé's head and tossed his hair.

"Well first you have to mix some sand and water together. That's what makes it stick together…" Gustave poured the buckets on to the water and he and Erik created the solution. I got up and walked the beach looking for interesting sea glass, feathers, stones, and shells to decorate the castle. When I walked back to where they sat the sand castle was halfway built. I poured my findings into one of the buckets and started to help form a little moat around the building. Gustave found a pair of sticks and put them in the moat to create alligators while Erik filled the moat with water. I placed a large goose feather in each tower to give them the look of flags. Gustave used a rock to make a door and Erik made windows out the sea shells. Erik pulled out his old pocket watch from my small purse.

"It is three thirty Gustave. You must be ready for your lessons at four."

"You right father!" Gustave rose from his place in the sand and began to brush the sand from his legs. I stood and helped his brush away the sand.

"What is this lesson for?"

"Gustave is going to help Skunk run the cotton candy stand. Skunk is going to teach him how to make cotton candy today." Gustave licked his lips. Erik and I both laughed at his response. Erik rose from his place in the sand last.

"Alright well then we must go then huh?" Erik found my hand quickly and entwined his fingers around mine. Gustave gathered up his pails and shovel while Erik bent down to grab my blanket. Gustave ran ahead of us as we made our way back up to Phantasma, very carefully avoiding the dock. The walk was short and you could smell the fair food a few steps up the small sand dune the divided the ocean shore from Phantasma. When we reached our home Gustave quickly ran up the stairs to his room to get dressed for his work at the cotton candy stand today. We took a few steps up the stairs when there was cough behind us. I turned to see Squelch behind us.

"When will young Gustave be ready, Sir?"

"He will be down in only a few moments." Squelch bowed his head and stood waiting for Gustave who came running down the stairs moments later, fully clothed and almost completely dry. Erik and I walked up the stair and down the hallway. But before we could find our way the bedroom I took a detour into the room with the light brown door with hidden music notes in its grain. Erik followed behind me, his hands circled around my waist. His mouth rested on the nape of my neck. "So I see you went exploring."

"Well did you really expect me to sit around alone in our room do you?" A moan fell from his lips.

"Our room." He sounded so peaceful and so full of joy. I slipped out of his grasp before my legs could give out from beneath me.

"So what have you been working on darling." I slid onto the organ's bench. Erik followed right behind his fingers slid onto the smooth keys and began to move intricately up and down the organ.

"Oh just a few things. I haven't had much time to write you the opera you so do deserve though Christine and I ask for your forgiveness. Before you came my inspiration was lacking and now that you're here my time has been, well, lacking." I felt the blush move up my neck and into my cheeks. I knew very well that he was referring to my constant need to hold him in my arms. I couldn't stand the thought of him being out of my grasp again. My thoughts were quickly pushed away as my ears began to fill with his melodies. It was so delicate and detailed, like fine lace. I couldn't keep from humming to the music. Not long after words began to flow from my mouth. I wasn't really paying too much attention to what I was saying but Erik was. He suddenly stopped and picked up his pen writing fiercely below each staff. "Brilliant Christine! Those were the words that I had been lacking. They seemed to flow from me and out of you! It's brilliant, just brilliant." He pulled my lips to mine and before I could catch a breath he pulled away and was playing once more.

The music was coming to its soft end when there was a soft knock at the door followed by the entrance of little Gustave. He ran to where we sat and jumped into my lap. "Oh mother, today was fantastic! I had so much fun running the food stand. I got to count money and make cotton candy. It is so fascinating, like little cobwebs!"

"You weren't working for very long." Erik leaned over to me placing his beautiful pocket watch in my hand. The short time we spent playing music had actually been hours. It was already seven thirty. Gustave was to be sent to bed in a half hours' time. I set him down and stood up. "Well I suppose it wasn't after all. But you need food in your belly before bed darling."

"Dinner should be ready by now dear." Erik held my hand and pulled me towards the dining room. The clean and perfectly set table was now covered in thousands of platters of different food. They included all of my favorite dishes and every one of Gustavé's. Gustave sat at the head of the table while Erik pulled a chair out beside him for me. Erik sat beside me. I was a strange change, before with Raoul we would sit as far away from one another as possible. Raoul thought that it was the classy way to dine with one's family. And I had recently taken my meals in Erik's bed. I could sit for no more than five minutes without making some physical contact with Erik and he must have noticed. After we finished eating Erik cleared the table, to help with the servants, a thing Raoul thought himself too important to do, and I went to go tuck my darling Gustave into a deep night's sleep.

"I've missed this mother." Gustave was lying under the covers of his bed. I kissed his forehead as I kneeled at his bedside.

"So have I darling. Did you have a good day today?" He nodded his head quickly. "Well good a few more trips to the beach and you'll be swimming like a champion." He smiled brightly I could see his tongue wiggle one of his front teeth. "Gustave, open your mouth." I put my finger on his tooth and wiggled it. "Gustave you have your first loose tooth!" Gustave had always been a late bloomer when it came to growing up. When most children had only half of their mouths full of teeth Gustave had not lost a single tooth.

"Gangle was telling me about the tooth fairy. Does she really pull your baby tooth out while you're sleeping?"

"Of course not! What exactly did he tell you Gustave?" Gustave smiled and chuckled.

"I'm only joking. Some of the boys from my old school told me stories. I can't wait to lose this bad boy." I giggled and kissed his head once more.

"I'm sure. Now goodnight Gustave. Sleep tight!" I rose from my place on the floor and walked through the door. As I went to leave I left the door cracked so the hallway would give his room some light, Gustave was still afraid of the dark.

"You can close it mother."

"Are you sure?"

"Have you seen my father? Do you think anything is dumb enough to mess with him?" I chuckled and closed the door tight behind me. Two big strong hands grabbed my waist tight and turned me around. Erik's mouth found mine instantly. He bent down far enough so my tiptoes were not necessary. His force held me against the wall behind my back. My hands grabbed the back of his neck and pulled him closer to me. He chuckled and pulled back.

"I've been fighting the urge to do that all day." I slipped out from under his arms and ran down the hall. He caught me quickly and threw me down on the bed effortlessly. My fingers instinctively found the bottom edge of his mask and pulled it off. I threw it at the wall on the other side of the room. Erik didn't even flinch instead his fingers wove around my bathing suit and began to tug at it.


	21. Lost in the Music Once More

**I'm thinking my chapters are just going to start being shorter. I can write a good portion but then I find myself busy and let it go for a few days then I write more and more until it's a good enough length to be posted. I really don't like posting below 1,000 words but I feel bad if I post nothing at all so they might just end up shorter for a while. But I hope you like this chapter. Read & Review please.**

I woke up at three in the morning. The bed was empty and I could hear the faint sound of rain as it hit the roof. Sudden hits of thunder filled the room with a bass to the lovely melodies that echoed through the house. The music was low and ominous, much like the storm itself. But it wasn't coming from this room. I wrapped myself in one the black sheets on the bed. I found myself walking, not in the direction of the music, which is what usually happened, but towards the bathroom.

One of the walls had somehow transformed into a wall of glass. The storm's lightning was the only thing that kept the bathroom from complete darkness. There was a single dark form sitting on the floor staring out at the storm. Lightning crashed down creating a beautifully eerie glow over the ocean. I walked toward Erik's form and sat beside him. He turned to face me as another crash of lightning ripped through the sky. I could see the faint outlines of tears across his cheeks and then we were submerged into darkness. I cupped his face in my hands.

"Erik what's wrong?" His eyes were far away and he seemed distraught.

"Beautiful. So beautiful." His eyes focused on my face and they seemed to fill once again with tears. "I'm sorry Christine."

"Erik what's wrong?" The panic in me rose my voice a few octaves. I crawled into his lap and pulled the sheet tight around us. Erik's body was cold and I couldn't imagine how long he had been sitting there. After a few moments he calmed and his rigid body softened. His arms found their way around my body and he held me tight to him. He stopped shaking and he looked down at me.

"I heard the storm tonight and I got up to play, inspired by its rage. But as I sat down this music filled my ears. Then I found myself here looking out at the storm and thinking to myself, hating myself. How could I leave alone, and with our child? How could I do that to you? What would our lives have been like together if I would have stayed? What if-" I stopped him. I couldn't stand to hear the pain in his voice. I could bear to hear the way his voice cracked like that.

"You don't think I've thought about all of that before. Erik it was meant to be like this. There were some things I had to learn. I had to grow and mature and I got to do that because of that night Erik. It had to be done. The past is the past and there is nothing we can do about it and there is nothing we should do about it. Think of the present. Think of what we have right now. We have each other and a loving, talented son. You have a career and acceptance and love. We are meant to be Erik and nothing could or can ever change that." Our fingers entwined and I felt we were undefeatable and invincible.

"Oh, Christine. I love you so much." He pulled me tighter closing the last bit of space between us. We looked out onto the water as the last note was played. I fell asleep in Erik's arms listening to his heartbeat. When I woke up again, the clothing that had covered the floor the night before was cleaned and put away, Erik's arms were tight and secure around me.

"Good morning beautiful." His voice was deep and rich in my ear, sending shivers through my body. I turned around in his arms to face him.

"I love you Erik." I kissed him delicately but his arms wrapped tighter around me making the kiss become more passionate.

"I love you too, Christine." Erik let go of me and slipped out of the bed. He walked over to the floor and picked up the last remaining article of clothing, his infamous mask, and slipped it on his face. He walked into his closet and returned moments later dressed in a very classy black suit. He walked back towards the bed and I pulled him into it. "Christine, you realize mornings are usually used for get dressed not undressing those around you correct?" He chuckled and I couldn't help but blush.

I pulled myself out of the bed reluctantly and walked into my closet. I slid on a white blouse and pulled on a long black skirt. I looked down at my left hand and almost forgot that Erik's ring still graced my hand. I was so lucky to have found him. Well to have had him find me. What if Erik hadn't noticed me? What if he had given lessons to someone else? What if he had fallen in love with someone else? I suppose Raoul wouldn't have felt so threatened and wouldn't have picked up his lovely habits of drinking and gambling. But something would always be missing. There wouldn't ever be that spark of devotion. I would never feel what I felt now. I would never be truly happy and I would never honestly know love.

"You look exquisite, darling." I turned to see Erik leaning against the closet door's frame. He was staring back at me with so much admiration and adoration that my heart swelled with love. I walked towards him and slid my arms around his waist pulling his best against me.

"When are we going to get married Erik?" He looked down at me. He obviously hadn't expected me to ask him. But he smiled down at me.

"Whenever you want Christine. Whenever you feel better we'll start planning."

"Now Erik. Please? I want you to be mine now and forever Erik."

"But Christine, I have been yours since the day I first laid eyes on you while you were praying over your father. I have been yours Christine for about twenty years now Christine."

"And I was a fool for not running away with you sooner." He pulled my chin up and he kissed my delicately.

"Maybe just a little." He chuckled and slipped out of my reach before I could elbow him.

Erik and I walked down to the dining room for breakfast. Gustave was already halfway through with his breakfast by the time we arrived.

"I'm sorry Mother but I'm helping Dr. Gangle's brother, Randle, muck stalls today." Gustave was only nine and he was acting like an adult. He ran out of the room with only a peck on the cheek. I turned to Erik who was pulling out a chair at the table for me.

"I guess it's just you and me today." I sat down in the offered chair and he sat beside me.

"Well actually I was thinking that maybe you could sing the song we wrote yesterday, at tonight's late show." Phantasma had five shows a day and was always busy, but the grand show did not start until late at night, that was when the best acts would perform.

"I would love to Erik. Before the night I sang Love Never Dies, it hadn't sung in years."

"Raoul I take it."

"He believed if he cut music from my life, he would cut you from my heart. You can clearly see how well his plan worked out for me." I could how troubled Erik was as the ideas of Raoul's cruel treatment flashed through his mind. "It's okay Erik." He shook his thoughts away and pulled the cover off of one of the plates on the tables. Below it was a large stack of blueberry pancakes. I placed two on my plate and he uncovered the next tray revealing chocolate chip muffins and bacon. He made sure that all of my favorite foods were always on the table.

After we finished eating we sat in the music room singing and playing for what felt like days. But it was amazing. I always seemed to forget the thrill that I got from music. After a while we had to take a break so my voice wouldn't be overworked. We walked down the spiraling staircase and entered the back of the main building where the big acts were displayed. Gustave was practicing acrobatics with Miss Fleck again.

"Tonight is his first performance. He wanted to wait until you were well enough to watch. He wants to surprise you." I quickly turned from what Gustave was doing afraid to ruin his perfect surprise. Erik's hand slipped into mine and he pulled me out of the building's back entrance. The ground was soggy from the storm the night before, yet the sun shone brightly. The air was filled with the sugary scent of the festival food. Erik pulled me into every building, proudly displaying each one of his employees and their talents. He took me into the stables and showed me each animal. There was one white horse I recognized very well. Cesar had been at the Opera Populaire as a trained horse for a few of the operas performed, until he was stolen by the supposed Opera Ghost.

I pointed to Cesar and Erik shrugged. "Once you bond with a horse…" I laughed at his answer. I ended up eating two Carmel Apples before we returned back to the house to finish my rehearsal. After a while Erik had to leave to check in with his other acts to make sure everything was running smoothly.

There was an hour before my performance so I was wondering around backstage. I hadn't even made it to my dressing room when I was being pulled into the wings by Squelch. Gustave was just entering the stage. This time Fleck wasn't with him, he was all by himself. But boy did he own that stage. He did his cloth routine with such elegance and precision. He was so talented, he was indeed a child prodigy and he never seized to amaze me. When he finished he ran off stage towards me. He crashed into my arms and held me tight.

"So what did you think Mother?"

"You were incredible. You were just so beyond words. I am so proud of you Gustave!" He grinned up at me and began to pull me further backstage.

"Thank you. Now we must get you ready for your performance." He pulled me into my dressing room. There on the dressing table sat a single red rose with a black satin ribbon tired around its stem. A long white garment bag hung on the back of the door. Gustave sat at the dressing table and watched as my shaking hand pulled down the bag's zipper. Inside was an elegant red gown. I quickly slid it on. The shape of the dress let it cling it to my body in the most flattering places. It cascaded to the ground in tendrils of silky fire. It was the most gorgeous thing I had ever seen. "Wow Mother. You look so beautiful, so very beautiful." I kneeled down to his side and kissed his forehead.

"And so are you, Gustave. I am so proud of you darling. You have grown up so quickly these past few days and it astounds me. You are so talented and I am so proud of you. I love you Gustave."

"Five more minutes Ms. Daae." I grinned. Erik must have made sure that no one would ever call me Viscountess De Chagny, which made me glad. I was never meant to be a Viscountess. I was and would always be in love with the one and only phantom of the Opera Populaire. Erik was my fiancée, owner of my heart, other half to my soul, and father of my child. I rose from my spot on the floor and walked towards the door. Gustave ran ahead of me and found his place in the wings. I followed the lights that led to my destiny.

As I reached the stage I looked out at the stunned faces of the audience. The music started to play and I looked off to my right to see the great pianist at work. Erik was where he had always belonged onstage in front of thousands displaying his talent as he played the magnificent music he wrote for me.


	22. Warnings

Adrenaline was still pulsing through my veins. The song ended with a standing ovation. Erik exited stage right and I exited stage left. It was thrilling being on stage. The crowd's anticipation thrilled me to the core and its approval brought on the electricity.

"You were amazing Mother. I have never heard you sing like that before. It was beautiful. Did Father write it?" I had almost forgotten that Meg had taken Gustave away before my last performance. He had never seen me perform before.

"Indeed he did, Darling." Gustave and I walked to my dressing room. The room was full of bouquets of flowers from random admirers. One in particular stuck out to me. I walked toward the window sill where a lone vase sat. Inside of the vase sat a bundle on pure white orchids with splashes of a blood red. Beneath the vase sat a small white envelope. I opened the envelope and pulled out the white square of paper. In a delicate cursive hand were the words, "This is a Warning." The words stole my breath away and chilled me to the core. How was it that just when my life was becoming perfect, something awful happened. I picked the flowers up and threw them in the trash. I ripped up the letter and let the pieces sprinkle over the flowers.

Who sent those? It couldn't have been Raoul. He had left and returned to Paris. He was heartbroken, but he was still an honorable man, he was no man of threats. Raoul had grown within our last moments together. He wanted to change. He would never do such a thing.

Madame Giry and Meg had disappeared after the accident, but even with a hole in my side I could feel in my heart that Meg would never intentionally hurt me. She had a sudden lapse in judgment and sanity. Meg had suffered such an ordeal. She grew up with a ballet instructor as a mother. I could only imagine the constant criticism she would receive on a daily basis. She only wanted to be accepted and loved and she tried to find that in Erik, my Erik. But Erik could never see anyone else the way he saw me and it drove her to madness. But even still she was in her mother's care, recovering.

"Mother?" I turned to see Gustavé's confused expression. I composed myself and smiled back at him.

"Everything is fine darling. I'm allergic to that kind of flower, that is all." His muscles relaxed. "We should get home Darling, you need your rest. It is past your bedtime by now, I'm sure." His shoulders hunched forward.

"But Mother, Father said there was going to be a dinner after the performance tonight to celebrate you." I put my hands on his shoulders and guided him to the door.

"Yes, dear, a dinner too late for my ten year old child to attend."

"A few more months and I'll be eleven. Then I won't be sent off to bed while all of the adults get to have fancy dinners." I laughed at his words and guided him through the crowds backstage.

"Do you know where your father is Gustave?"

"He had to help Miss Fleck with something."

"Alright darling." Somehow we had made it through the crowds and slipped past the audience to the back of the theatre where the spiral staircase led up to our home. I led Gustave to the kitchen so he could fill himself on a small dinner. Once he finished he ran off to get ready for bed. I walked slowly towards his room. Where was Erik? Why had he just disappeared? I hadn't seen Erik since our practice earlier that day and even during the performance he refused to look up at me. But of course I couldn't keep my eyes off of him as he took his bow. His suit hugged his body perfectly. He was such a handsome man; it amazed me that I had never noticed before. I reached Gustavé's room as he was climbing into his bed. I walked over to him and sat on the floor. He laid down and I pulled the covers up to his chin.

"You were outstanding tonight, Gustave. Your father and I are so very proud of you. You are already turning into the genius your father is." He smiled.

"I only hope to be half as talented as you and Father. You guys took the audiences breath away tonight. For the past month or so I have been to every show, every day. That's about one hundred and forty shows, Mother, and I have never seen such a reaction before." I kissed his forehead.

"Well once they hear you I'm sure you'll stun them into silence through to the following month." He laughed but I could see his eyes filling with hope as the new dream graced his brain.

"Thank you, Mother."

"Goodnight, Gustave. I love you so much Darling."

"I love you too." I got up from my place on the floor and brushed my hands over the beautiful red dress. I walked out into the hallway and closed Gustavé's door tight behind me. I walked back down to where the stage sat. The audience was still trying to file their way out.

"You stole my breath away tonight." I turned around at the familiar voice. But there was no one near me. I groaned at Erik's absence. "Where are you Erik?!"

"Do you really think I can trust myself to be near you right now, in public? You are so beautiful that I know I would never be able to control myself." I blushed in modesty at his words. Well that explained why he had made sure to avoid me so thoroughly tonight.

"But Erik I need you with me. How could you ever expect me to be happy without my fiancée at my side?" There was a sudden gust of wind and then Erik's hands were on my shoulders as he slipped his jacket over my body. I could hear his sigh of pleasure when I mentioned the word fiancée. I grinned at my triumph and turned around to face him.

"Alright then. But please where my jacket and cover yourself. At least try to make these easier for me." I giggled at his words and wrapped my arms around him pulling him close. He returned the embrace but pulled away before I could try to kiss him. "Please try, Christine." I sighed. No physical contact with my Erik tonight. This was going to be difficult.

I followed suit. I greeted strangers and followed where Erik pulled me to. I thanked people for coming and was happy to fill my empty stomach with the meal that was served. I shook hands with everyone that came to greet me and blushed at all their compliments, making sure they knew that Erik was the one who taught me all I knew. I watched as the men and women's faces fell when I told them of my engagement. I couldn't help but get jealous of all the women who seemed to throw themselves at my fiancée. Erik didn't even seem to notice them, but he made sure not to look at me either. By the end of the night, the last few stragglers found their way home. Phantasma closed for the night. It would only be closed for a few hours before it opened once again for the first performance of tomorrow. The short time in between gave the performers a few hours to sleep.

Erik left me for a few moments to discuss clean up with one of the caterers. I made my way back to our home. My walk was sluggish from my obvious exhaustion. The comfort of my soothing bed was too tempting to pass up. I had finally reached the spiral staircase's first step.

"And where do you think you're going." I grinned and turned around to see Erik staring down at me his eyes gleaming with desire.

"Well I was thinking of sleeping. But now…" Erik's smile increased and soon his lips were on mine and his hands held me tightly to his chest. He made it so hard to focus. The gentle brush of his skin on mine and the aggressiveness of his lips against mine made my head swirl. He let go of me giving me just enough time to wiggle out of his reach and run up the staircase two at a time. I needed the feeling of his body more than I needed sleep. The brief encounter with him had set my nerves on edge and woke me from me exhaustion. I had one thing on my mind and that was him.

The moment I finally reached the parlor Erik's hands were all over my body and I wasn't one to argue. His hands groped for the dress's zipper, while his mouth ran down my cheekbone and neck. I tried to concentrate on his shirt's buttons but he just made it so damn difficult. Soon enough we gave up on being careful in preserving each other's clothing and the sounds of silk and cotton ripping filled the room's silence.

"Erik. Bedroom." It was hard to get a breath out in between his kisses but I seemed to have managed a few words. He pulled back and looked down at me.

"Agreed." He picked me up in his arms and made his way down the hallway being extra quiet as we passed Gustavé's door. He threw the doors open with one hand and kicked them closed with his foot, never letting my lips leave his. I pulled off the final remains of his shirt and let them drop to the ground. He laid me down on the bed I pulled off the dress.

"You know it is a real shame. I happened to like that dress." He looked up at me with a mischievous grin.

"Yes, well I could say the same for the multitude of shirts of mine you have ripped." I blushed in embarrassment for my lack of control that came with being near Erik for too long.

"It is the buttons. I don't like buttons. There are far too many and they make me frustrated. Don't get me wrong I love you in button-downs, they are just a nuisance to get off of you."

"Perhaps I should wear something else in occasions like this."

I couldn't stop the mumble that fell from my lips. "Perhaps you should wear nothing in occasions like this." But of course he heard and chuckled at my response. I could feel the heat rise below my skin. Only Erik could cause me to make a complete fool of myself. How did he have such effect on me that I lost all control? His hands slid down my side with such tenderness that our skin was just barely touching one another's. There was my answer. I was so physically attracted to him that my primal instincts would come to me and I would lose all of my class.

My hands pawed at his back begging him to come closer. He gave into my needs and pulled me closer. My fingertips slid up his back and around his shoulders resting on the edge of his mask. They slipped beneath and pulled the mask up over his head. With a flick of the wrist the mask landed on the other side of the room. It was moments like this where the mask irritated me. I didn't like seeing it hide his beauty. The mask was a symbol for the treatment my dear angel had received his whole life, things that should not be thought of at such a moment of love.

I brushed my lips against his uneven skin. He moaned in pleasure and let his hands knot into my hair. I sighed and ran my fingertips down his chest. He was so well built. He was strong but not muscular. He was pure perfection. His lips grazed my shoulder and his hands slipped beneath my back attempting to discover the back of my bra. My hands continued their journey downward until they rested on Erik belt buckle.

"You are so exquisite, Christine, like a fine marble statue."

"I was just thinking the same about you my love." I slipped his belt out from his pant loops and tossed it aside. Why did he have to wear so many layers? Just trying to undress him took half an hour, although some of that time was spent distracted by his never ending kisses and adventurous hands. It was hard to believe that after ten years my day dreams had turned to reality. After ten years we were finally able to lie in each other's arms once more. I pulled back from Erik's mouth for a moment. "Erik?"

"Yes my angel?"

"Did you-Well while we were apart- Were you- Did you…make love to anyone else?" He was thoughtful for a moment.

"That would imply that I had the ability to love anyone but you, my Christine." He pulled my chin up and kissed the tip of my nose.

"So you weren't ever with anyone else. You never kissed another woman or anything?"

"Well there were nights when Madame Giry attempted to set me up with other woman to help me get over you, but I never paid attention to them and made an excuse a few minutes into the date." I smiled satisfied with his answer, until a face popped into my mind.

"And Meg?"

"Now that's a curious subject. I have very little knowledge of what ran through that woman's mind. But I knew it wasn't good. But no she irritated and repulsed me. Christine, there is no other woman on this planet who could compete with your pure perfection. Why do you assume that I would be with anyone but you? How could you assume that I would want to be with anyone but you? I am holding a goddess in my arms right now, no simple minded human could ever replace you."

"You think too highly of me." Of course Erik wouldn't have been with anyone else. I was his one and only. He saw found me to be flawless but I was hardly perfect. He had stayed loyal to me. He had lived a lonely life for ten years. I had gotten married the very next morning after we had made love. Yes, Raoul and I had had sex. It wasn't nice or even satisfying but rather a chore that I had to do as a mother and wife.

"If you only saw what I saw."

"Erik, I'm not as good as you are. I cheated on Raoul the night before our wedding day. I lied through our entire marriage. I gave him false hope and imaginary love. I was cruel and selfish. I never should have gone through with the marriage. I didn't really love him anymore. I'm not even sure if I ever truly loved him. Yet I let him believe I did. I was physically there but mentally I dazed off thinking of you and what you were up to. I-" Erik wiped away my tears as they fell from my eyes. "How could I have married one man when every moment of our life together I spent it dreaming of you?"

"It is okay Christine. Raoul will learn to love and one day he will find a woman he loves as much as I love you. You two were never meant to be more than friends but Raoul is destined to find love, one day."

"I guess you are right. But I wasted so many of his years."

"It's okay Christine. Believe me, I know the effects love for you has on a man, it would take just as many years trying to get over you. One day he'll have what we have and he will not resent you for what you did because he would probably do the same." Erik hugged my head to his chest tightly. The beating of his heart calmed my nerves and silenced my tears.

"Thank you, Erik." He looked down at me in surprise.

"For what?"

"For not giving up on me."

"You say that as if I had a choice." I laughed at his response and kissed his lips. It amazed me how quickly the ferocious need for him returned.


	23. Confessions

Erik hummed quietly into my hair as he held me tightly in my arms. His fingertips traced up and down my spine. I relished in the beauty of his body. It was so nice to finally be able to lay in Erik's arms. Everything was finally falling into place. I could finally call him mine. When he was by every doubt or stress in my life easily faded away. Was it possible to be this happy?

No. My body turned cold and froze in Erik's warm embrace. The image of the mysterious flowers floated into my mind. The thought of ruining this perfectness was devastating. I couldn't deny the fear that chilled my bones as the memory of Erik's temperament floated at the back of my mind. But I wanted honesty. I pulled back from the comfort of Erik's chest just enough to look into his warm brown eyes. His brows were furrowed in thought. I could tell he was trying to figure out the cause of my sudden tenseness.

"Erik?"

"Yes my Christine?"

"There is something I must tell you, love."

"Yes?"

"After my performance I came across something rather peculiar." He looked at me, confusion flooding his face. His big brown eyes clouded with concern.

"What was it, Christine?" His voice expressed his anxiety.

"It was an orchid. But the coloring of it was strange. It almost looked like spilt blood. And there was a note with it. And it said, 'This is a warning.'" I could see the blackness of anger flood into his eyes blending with his chocolate brown. He released me and jumped out of the bed. His hands balled into fists and he paced back and forth muttering curse under his breath. I slipped out of bed of the bed and walked over to his side. I slid the back of my hand across his unmasked face. He stopped pacing and caught my hand holding it to his face. His eyes met mine and I could see the calmness flow into him.

"I'm sorry Christine." Tears began to roll down his cheeks. I wiped them away with the tips of my thumbs.

"For what, Erik?"

"All I have ever wanted was to provide you with everything. I've lived my life around the idea of providing you with a perfect and safe family. And somehow there are things slipping through the cracks. I can't give you all you deserve." I wrapped my arms around him and held him as close to my heart as possible.

"Erik, I cheated on my fiancée and lied to him. He believed my lover's child was his and then after we were married I left him. Erik, I'm still legally married to him and engaged to you. I was not a maid when I married my fiancée. I don't deserve anything. I am unworthy of your love and I am unworthy of you, Erik."

"Oh, my Christine. How could you ever dare to think such things! You did what you had to do to survive. I was the one who left you, darling. You did nothing wrong."

"My entire life is based on regret. Regret that started with the night I left staring after me as I sailed across Lake Averne with my arms around Raoul. I never should have left you, Erik. I have never experienced such an intense amount of love for anything as I do you, Erik." His eyes filled with tears once more. He leaned down and let his lips meet mine. The simple touch of skin was filled with such intensity that my legs wobbled beneath me. Erik held me tight enough to support both of our weight.

I pulled back from him slowly and caught my breath. "The only thing I need is you. You have given me everything I never deserved." His lips pulled back into a brilliant smile that stole away the breath that had just met my lungs.

"You are everything I imagined Heaven would be like. But I never thought I would be one accepted into the pearly gates."

"Tomorrow's Sunday. Would you like to go to church with Gustave and me?" He flashed another grin and pulled me closer to him.

"But of course. But for tonight may I still have a taste of Heaven?" His lips greeted my neck and then I was pulled down onto the bed.


	24. The Phantom of the Cathedral

The carriage ride was long but the crisp spring air was refreshing. Gustave sat slouched in his seat trying to stay awake. He had been up late writing new scores in the music room without our knowing. Erik sat erect he was clearly nervous and on edge. I held his hand in mine tracing patterns on the back of his hand with my thumb. He turned to look at me, smiling at the gentle sensation on his skin. Going to church had been the only time I knew Raoul would never show up when Gustave and I were together. It was the only time I was free to breathe without worrying about offending him. Gustave was able to be himself. It was also the only place I had been free to sing and Gustave to play the piano.

Going to church had been our time together. And now I was thrilled to think that Erik would be there with us. It would be weird to have him there beside me in the pew. I usually found myself searching for his silhouette in the shadows and corners of the building. I knew he was never there but it didn't stop me from yearning he was. When the carriage stopped at its destination I felt Erik tense once more. Gustave jolted upward from him sleep. The carriage door opened and Erik got out. Once out he held his hand out to me to help me down. I took it graciously and stepped out into the bright sun. Gustave quickly followed.

The people we passed couldn't help but stare at the strange masked man. But I held my head high and squeezed Erik's hand urging him to enter the church. It was strange Erik had never been to a real church. He had never really wanted to be around humanity but he especially refused to go near churches. He had always believed himself to be a monster, spawn of Satin himself, a creature of darkness, and a demon from Hell.

Gustave ran ahead of us scoping out the perfect pew. He was disappointed when he saw the lack of piano in the huge cathedral. Erik chuckled knowing quite well what Gustave had been looking for. He tapped him on the shoulder and pointed back behind us. Gustave and I turned to a large pipe organ on a balcony above the churches entrance. Gustavé's mouth fell open and I could see his eyes fill with jealousy as the pianist found his spot on the organ's bench. He cracked his fingers and let them fall on to the keys. They were slow and clumsy hitting wrong note every few moments. Erik cringed at the man's lack of genius. Everyone around us seemed to sway to the bright music filling the room. But Gustave and I both looked at each other with a look of distaste.

"May I?" Before I could answer Erik nodded his head and Gustave was running off towards the staircase at the back of the room.

"You cannot let him do things like that, Erik."

"Things like what, allowing our son to display good music to the world?"

"No things like allowing him believe his better than others."

"But he is."

"I just do not want him to turn cocky."

"Well that is understandable, darling. I am sorry." Suddenly everyone around us gasped. The room was suddenly filled with unearthly music. The pipes bellowed the most angelic music the world had ever known. I turned to see Erik smiling. "That's my boy. " I glared back at him mockingly and he turned away from me. "So, shall we sit?" I followed his gaze to the pew beside us. I slid in and he followed suit. I cuddled as close to him as possible. Being in public and a church made public displays of affection near impossible. He wrapped his arms around me and held me close. "So I assume it is just you and I for this morning's service."

The minister entered the room and everyone rose to their feet. His voice was quiet but powerful at the same time. After a while worship began and we sang through parts of the hymn book. Erik glanced done and smiled at me. He was lost in my voice as much as I was in his. His voice was a deep, rich honey that sent thrills through me. We were too enveloped in each other to see the other people turning to hear us. After the singing was over Gustave returned to my side and cuddled into my side. The minister preached on adultery. The topic set my stomach in knots. Was this considered cheating? I was technically still married to Raoul. I knew that Erik could sense my rising anxiety. Nothing about this felt wrong. I was with my fiancée, the love of my life, and our child in church. But it was. I could write a list of all of the sins I had committed in the past month, adultery just being one. Erik's fingers traced down my arms leaving the dark thoughts to float from my mind.

Once service let out we made our way out of the church. Gustave ran ahead leaving Erik to chase after him. A hand grabbed my arm, raising the hair on the back of my neck. I turned to see an old woman staring up at me. I sighed in relief. Why was I suddenly so jumpy? Was I truly afraid of a silly old note? I was engaged to the apparition that had haunted the Opera Populaire for years. No human could ever harm me.

"It was so nice to see such young love. You ought to be very proud of such a talented young man you have. But of course he must have received it from you and your husband." Definitely not from my husband. I smiled back at the woman who held tightly to my arm.

"Yes, his father is quite the musical genius. I am very lucky to have such men in my life."

"I hate to ask, but why does your husband where that mask. He seems to be quite the handsome young man."

"He is indeed. But he is also an artist and a genius. Now if you don't mind I would like to get back to them."

"Certainly. But if you don't mind me asking, what is your name? We would love to have you back here again." I smiled at her but something was just off about this woman. Something was screaming at me not to tell her who I was.

"Meg. Meg Giry." My answer did not seem to satisfy her. She quickly released my arm and walked away muttering things to herself. I turned and hurried back to Erik's protective embrace. I found him helping Gustave into the carriage. I ran into his arms and let his humming hush away my fears.


	25. Set the Date

**I am so sorry to you guys. I have been super busy with theatre and haven't had time to write. But our show just closed so I am proud to continue the story of Erik and Christine. I hope you enjoy. Read & Review.**

It astounds me to think of how I used to dread the morning. Mornings used to mean dealing with another day as a Vicomtess. It had been a life I used to dream of, but once I had it, it was a chore. Becoming Raoul's wife had not been the dream I had imagined it to be. I had been walking on eggshells for ten years with him. I never wanted to hurt him. I did love him. He was one of my oldest friends. He was my only friend to have known my father. We shared many fond memories together. We had many laughs and shed many tears. I loved him. But I was never truly IN love with him. They are both two very different things. It made it impossible to live with him. But I knew it caused him as much pain as it had caused me.

But things had once again change. I learned the beauty of mornings. I opened my eyes to see the sun's rays pass through the windows and shine across Erik's glorious body. His perfect face was lit at such flattering angle that I found it impossible not to kiss his lips. I leaned down carefully and slowly gently placing my lips on his. His arms wrapped around me quickly pulling me tight against his flawless body. His lips moved with mine. I pulled back a moment later to catch my breath. His eyelids fluttered opened and graced me with the deep brown of his eyes. "You are so distracting, Miss Daae." His arms loosened their grip on me.

"What do you mean?"

"I was thinking of what to do with this… problem."

"What problem?"

"The threat you received."

"I am sure it is nothing."

"Christine, you have clearly been away for too long if you believe that I will not think this through. I would never let danger get within a thousand feet of you, love."

"It is nothing, Erik."

"How can you be sure?"

"Because I am not worried. And if you are perhaps you are in need of some more distracting." I rolled over and pulled him on top of me. I pulled his lips to mine before he could argue. But moments later we both had to pull back to catch a breath. The beating of our hearts was so loud and fast that we needed to take a break from being so close to one another, before someone's heart exploded.

"This came in the mail for you the other day." Erik rose from the bed and left the room. He walked back in holding a large manila envelope. I took it in my hands gingerly.

"What is it?" He looked at me curiously.

"How should I know, Christine."

"I guess I just assumed it went through… security." He chuckled.

"That is a federal offence." I opened the envelope and poured its contents onto the bed. There was a small stack of papers, a pen, and a smaller envelope. I lifted the smaller envelope up and slipped my finger beneath its tab. It opened with ease. Inside the envelope was a letter.

To my dearest Christine,

I am so sorry for all that I have done. I had a temporary lapse in judgment and sanity. I sought help and I am getting better. Mother has been helping me. In fact I ran into Raoul the other day. He was so distraught. Well he is also better now, so you mustn't worry. In fact we are in love. I am not quite sure how it happened. As you know yourself, it was not planned. But we are both so happy. We are engaged now, as I am sure you and Erik are. I am so happy for you. We are back in Paris, but we want to visit, if that is okay. Mother and I are back at the Opera Populaire. Every hallway looks the same as they had back then. It is a constant reminder of how much I miss and love you Christine. Please say you forgive me.

Love always,

Your little Meg.

P.S. Inside is an invitation to our wedding scheduled two months from now and the divorce papers for you and Raoul. Please write me back.

"What is all of this?" I looked up at Erik with tears and shock in my eyes.

"A wedding invitation and divorce papers from Meg and Raoul."

"Oh. I am sorry Christine. I know that this must be a lot for you. After what Meg did. And I understand if you still love Raoul." I looked up at Erik and wiped away my tears.

"Huh? You think I am in love with Raoul? Have you lost your mind? I am in love with you and only you." He kissed me gently on the cheek.

"I am glad to hear it. I do not know what would do if I lost you again."

"You never truly lost me. You have my heart right there." I poked his chest.

"I gave mine away so long ago I almost forgot what it felt like to have a heart again. I am sorry if it does not fit you properly, you see it is probably as deformed as me."

"And just like you it is pure perfection."

"Why were you crying, if you do not mind me asking?"

"The two people I hurt most of all found love in each other. That is everything I could have asked for."

"So you forgive Meg?"

"You didn't know her like I did. The woman on the dock was not Meg. She lost herself and now she's back. The only thing that upsets me is that they set their wedding date before us."

"Well once you sign these you are eligible for marriage." I grabbed the pen and scribbled my name on the specified lines. I slid them back in the envelope and relabeled it to Raoul's lawyer. I ran outside in my nightgown to the front gates and slipped it into the mailbox. But instead of walking back to the park, my feet fell to the path down to the dock. I sat down and let my feet skim the surface of the ocean. "I always found this place the most relaxing, when I first got here." Erik sat behind me placing his arms around me and letting his feet hit the water beside mine.

"Can we have our wedding here?"

"Really?"

"This is where our lives together started."

"Well technically it started in your dressing room after your performance."

"That is true, but a bit too cramped."

"You can have whatever you please, love."

"April 5th,1905."

"That's only in about two months."

"Yes. Two weeks after Meg's wedding."

"And also your birthday."

"Yes. Yes it is."

"Would you really like to celebrate our marriage and your birthday on the same day?"

"I couldn't find anything I would rather have for my birthday than you."

"Well than your wish is my command." He leaned down and kissed my shoulder.

"Erik when is your birthday?"

"February 18th."

"Erik!"

"What?"

"That was the day I moved into the Opera house."

"Well truthfully, I do not know my true date of birth. But the happiest and most life altering day of my existence was February 18th,1885."

"I love you Erik."

"And I you, my Christine." I snuggled closer into his embrace.


	26. Beneath the Stars

**I am so sorry that my writing has been lacking so much. I have just kind of been all over the place mentally. Alright well here's the next chapter. Once again I am so sorry. I hope you like it. Read & Review.**

~2 months later~

Everything was swirling past me in a blurring haze. Phantasma was closed for the season but most of the performers' homes were there. Dr. Gangle was put in charge while Erik, Gustave, and I were away for Meg's wedding. The boat ride was long and I exhausting. It was impossible to get any sleep in when I was enclosed in such a small space with Erik. At his request there was a piano in both his and Gustavé's rooms. I could hear the soft melodies echoing through the floorboards even as I sat on the top deck.

Gustave and Erik were both a little apprehensive about Meg. But I was thrilled to see her. We had never gotten to actually catch up before the whole incident. I could feel the hair on the back of my neck rise. The hollow sound of her voice flooded my memories. Her emotionless, blank stare crowded my vision. I pulled my shawl tighter around my shoulders. Gustave and Erik had been writing music all day and I had only had a few minutes to sneak away for some time by myself. It felt weird being without Erik, but at the same time it was nice to feel the sea's salty kiss on my face as the breeze whipped around.

The soft call of the seagulls blended so well with the piano. The waves gently rocking the ship helped to create the most calming and peaceful experience I had ever imagined. Before I came to America I forgot what it felt like to be this happy. I was fully content through and through. Life was literally bliss.

We were to be in France tomorrow evening. Raoul was to pick us up from the dock and bring us to their home in Paris. It was strange to think of how much my life had flip-flopped. I fell in love as a child with a boy, I fell in love as a girl with a man, I rekindled my love with the boy as a girl and chose him, as a lady I ran to the man I had loved and became a woman, and then after a tremendous journey here we were. I had my perfect family. I had my two boys and my best friend was to be married to the boy whom I had once loved and then left. In a twisted it all worked out. Somehow we all ended up happy. I guess God was good.

Erik was happy and experiencing so much love, I was sure his heart would burst at any moment. Gustave was always inspired. He finally had a father who loved him and always spent time with him. Meg found the love and adoration she had always wanted and Raoul had a woman who would love him and only him for who he was now and not who he once was. And Madame Giry had come to receive that fortune she had always been promised, once Raoul invested in Phantasma. Everything was working out perfect for everyone, except the one hitch in my perfect life.

Under my bed in a small hat box was a small collection of letters. All were addressed to me, without a single return address. Each said the same and each held the same threatening tone.

Vicomtess De Chagny,

Get out while you still can. This is a warning. Do it while you still can. This is a warning.

Someone will die and I already know who. This is a warning, get out while you still can.

-Angel of Death

I didn't dare show them to Erik though. I could still see the pain and fear in his eyes after I showed him the third letter I had received like this. That had been a month ago and he was still watching me out of the corner of his eye. His was terrified for my safety. Perhaps it was wrong of me to sneak out like I did. I rose from the deck chair I sat in. I turned towards the stairs that would lead me back to my room.

"Christine! My god you left me frightened. Where have you been? Are you alright? Did anything happen? Why did you-"

"I'm fine Erik. I'm sorry I left I just needed a few minutes to clear my head." He pulled me into his chest and wrapped his arms around me.

"I understand. But you do not need to worry. I would never let anyone harm you."

"I do not worry about such things Erik. I am very aware of what you are capable of. I am only stressed from all of the wedding planning and you know that I have been ill lately. I'm just worried something will go wrong at our wedding." The tension in Erik's muscles loosened and he looked down at me.

"Nothing will go wrong because this is what was destined to be. Nothing can ruin our lives together. I love you Christine." I smiled and Erik caught the single tear that fell down my cheek.

"I love you too Erik." He held me for a few minutes longer.

"So what were you doing out here."

"I was watching the sky's color change as the sun set."

"What a magnificent sight to behold."

"Yes it is."

"But it is not the best thing I have ever seen." He looked down at me once more and I was captivated by his big brown eyes.

"I believe I can say the same thing." I turned away before he could make me swoon. The last bits of day slipped past the horizon and then we were standing beneath a beautiful black sky with blue clouds sailing across. The world quieted itself and gave us just this moment of perfect silence. It was almost as if the world froze just for us. My fingers slid up to his face and tugged at the bottom of his mask. It happily slid up and over his head, revealing his beautifully scared face. I pulled his face down to my level and kissed its uneven surface. His hands groped my back. And then I could hear movement of the children on the lower deck being chased by worried mothers. The seagulls began to call once more and the waves awoke from their rest. I pulled back and sighed.

"It is time that I put Gustave to bed, Erik." I turned to walk away.

"Christine?" I turned back towards him.

"My mask?" I looked down at my hands and resisted the urge to throw it over board.

"Oh. Here, Erik. Although I do not think you will ever truly needed it." He took it from my hands and gingerly put it back in place.

"You did at one point." I turned back towards the stairs hurt by his words and made my way to Gustavé's room.


	27. France

"What am I to call him, mother?" I looked down into my poor child's eyes.

"I do not know, Gustave. This situation is a bit complicated."

"Well I cannot call him father. And it is too strange calling him Vicomte De Chagny." I held him closer to my chest and hugged him tighter. Erik walked into the room and stood behind me.

"I don't know Gustave. We shall see when we see Raoul tomorrow." I kissed his head and pulled the hair from his eyes. I tucked his blankets tighter around him and stood from his bed. "I love you Gustave sweet dreams." I stood back so Erik was able to lean down and kiss his forehead.

"Goodnight, Gustave."

"Goodnight, Father." We turned to leave. "I love both." Erik answered before I could.

"Not nearly as much as we love you." He closed the door tight behind him and I turned towards the door beside Gustavé's. I unlocked the door and found my way into our bedroom. "You know how I feel about this, Christine."

"I know Erik, but she is my friend. I owe it to both of them to attend their wedding."

"You owe them nothing! Think of everything they have put you through!"

"Erik calm down." Erik's muscles were beginning to tighten. His voice was rigid and raw.

"Calm down? How do you expect me to calm down? I feel like something disastrous is going to happen. I feel as though we are sailing to our dooms here. I will not lose you again Christine!" Erik's hands grabbed the back of one of the room's wooden chairs. I could hear it splinter beneath his strong hands. I gave way and broke in his hands. "I will not…" His voice faded into a whisper and he fell to his knees. Tears fell down his face and I could hear the sound of my heart breaking. I rushed to his side.

"You will never lose me Erik. Ever! I am here." Each sob ripped at my heart. "Do you remember what you said? We are destined to be together. There is nothing that could ever separate us. Not even death, Erik! Or love is too powerful for such a simple thing as death!" His sobs stopped long enough for me to pull his face to mine. "I am not going anywhere, Erik. It is you and me to the end and beyond." And then his lips were on mine. My breath caught as his fingers twisted into my hair, pulling me closer to him.

"Christine, I am not sure about this."

"It will be fine." But honestly I was just as worried as Erik. We were moments from reaching France. We would be spending the next month in Paris with the woman who had almost killed me and my ex-husband. At the same time Erik was still wanted for a few murders that had happened years ago at the Opera Populaire. Plus I also had someone sending me threatening letters.

"You are not a good liar Christine." I turned back to Erik and adjusted his jacket's collar. I ignored his words and kissed him lightly on the lips. "Gustave are you almost done packing?" Gustave's room door opened quickly and little Gustave wobbled out holding both of his large suitcases in his hands.

"Why yes, Father, I have seemed to have finished." He handed the bags to the sailor and turned to walk out to the ship's deck. Erik turned and looked at me. He was just as curious as I was about Gustave's strange behavior.

"He's your son, Erik." He sighed and then followed after Gustave to figure out what was wrong. "Do you need any help with the bags?" The sailor turned towards me, shocked by my question.

"Of course not, mademoiselle. But thank you for your kindness." He seemed to lift all of our bags effortlessly and carried them out to the deck.

Moments later people were rushing all around as the ship landed in France. Children were crying, toys and luggage were lost in all of the chaos, and adults were angry as they pushed their way through the crowd. I took a deep breath and let the salted wind bite at my throat. Perhaps it was stupid to come back here. Erik was a wanted man. I had almost died about three months ago at the hands of the woman I was now visiting. This was all too bizarre. But perhaps abnormality was becoming my life's normality. I slipped through the crowd and found Erik and Gustave waiting for me on the edge of the dock. Erik's radiant smile filled me with joy and I found myself holding myself back from running down everyone in front of me to jump into his arms.

Gustave had his head raised high. He seemed to be acting as mature as he could. I couldn't understand why he was trying to seem so grown up. It didn't seem to make much sense. He dressed himself in his very best suit this morning.

I pushed the thoughts away and focused on the crowd in front of me. I had almost forgotten how power hunger everyone in France was. Women were dressed in their finest gowns and stuck their noses high in the air. They threw small tips at the poor men struggling with their over packed luggage and pranced around like they were proud prima donnas. The sea sick feeling rushed through my body. The last time I had seen Carlotta, she was glaring at me through her tear filled eyes. She blamed me for the death of poor fiancé. She always blamed me for her misfortune, but this time I hadn't tried to argue with her. It had been my fault. Most of the deaths that had been at the Opera Populaire were my fault.

Tears began to fill my eyes as my self-hatred filled me. Horrible things usually followed me and clung to those around me. And now I had a happy life with my beautiful family. Last time I saw Carlotta, her career was destroyed because of "her croak" and she was distraught due to the death of her most beloved. It didn't seem fair. I had stolen everything from her and I wasn't suffering any consequences.

"Christine?"

"Mother?" I had almost forgotten where I was. I didn't even realized that I had reached the crowd and was standing before Erik and Gustave. I quickly turned back toward the boat and wiped away my tears.

"Who is ready for an adventure?" I turned back to look at Gustave, carefully avoiding Erik's face. His face was glowing with excitement. He was trying so hard to resist the urge to jump up and down. He quickly composed his face.

"Why that sounds like a splendid thought, mother." He turned and walked down to the edge of the dock and stood by the street. He looked back at Erik and me. "Well aren't you going to join me?"

"Yes, darling." I began to walk away from Erik quickly but he gentle grabbed my arm and stopped me.

"Christine, what's wrong? If you are truly scared we can leave now."

"Fa- Vicomte De Chagny, so nice to see you." Gustave's voice quickly changed from an energetic child to that of an old nobleman. I turned to where Gustave stood and saw him awkwardly staring up into the face of Raoul.

"Well that chance is gone now." I pulled my arm from Erik's grip and ran after my son to save him from the awkward predicament he was in.

"So good to see you, Christine. I've missed you so much!" His arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me tight against his chest before I had time to react. He pulled back and kissed me on the cheek. He finally released me and I stumbled back a few steps in shock. It was obvious that the Raoul I used to know was back. His face was cleanly shaven and he was wearing a delicate tan suit. He was wearing delicious cologne instead of the smell of whiskey and his dimples were found their way back onto his cheeks.

"And I you. My goodness, Raoul, I can't remember the last time I have seen you this happy."

"Love can do that to a man." He grabbed Gustave's hands and skipped around in a circle. Gustave's face lit up and he hopped along with Raoul. Raoul was reminding me of a seven year old boy on Christmas morning. Gustave's behavior was finally beginning to make sense. He was attempting to behave as the man he thought Raoul wanted him to be. He threw his arms around me again. "Oh, Christine!" I felt the muscles of his body grow taunt. He pulled away from me quickly and his face turned red. "It's nice to see you, Phan-" He gave a weak cough to attempt to cover up his slip. "-Erik." I turned to see Erik. He looked very intimidating the way he was standing. He was very clearly unhappy with the turn of events. But I knew, as strange as it was to think, that Raoul was not the person Erik was angry with. He shifted his stance and gave Raoul a very big, very fake smile. He thrust his hand out to Raoul.

"It is good to see you this way, Raoul. I did worry about you. I am so sorry for the way things worked out." Raoul loosened up and grabbed Erik's hand graciously.

"If anyone is to apologize for the way things went down, it is me. I got in the way of what was clearly destiny. I am so glad that you guys are both finally happy. I am so sorry for the way I have acted over the years. I have received help with my drinking problems. I've been sober since the night of your wonderful performance, Christine." It was weird that anyone could find anything pleasant about that night.

"Thank you, Raoul, but that was all of Erik's work." I let my hand find Erik's free one and held it tightly.

"Yes well, my little Meg has been dying to see you, Christine." He turned around and gestured to the large carriage behind him. "Shall we?" Gustave was quick to jump into the carriage and Raoul followed after him.

"Christine, what is wrong with you?"

"Can we please talk about this later, Erik?" I couldn't explain why my tone came out so harsh. I could see the hurt on Erik's face but I brushed off my feelings of guilt. He was starting to suffocate me with his feelings and his words. I didn't want to talk and I was becoming very tired of his clinginess. I let go of his hand and climbed into the carriage ignoring his offered hand. But my annoyance floated away as I was Raoul sitting inside. He had his arms around Gustave and he was tickling and holding him. They were laughing really hard and my heart filled with a longing for Raoul. Erik climbed in after me. He was quiet and very on edge. Looking at him filled me with such an intense need to cry. How could my heart be doing this again?

I blinked the tears away before they could fall and bit my lip. Everyone seemed to sense my anxiety and it left the trip to Raoul's home silent.

We followed Raoul as he showed Gustave to his old bedroom, where he quickly began to dig through his toy chest and find his old toys. He shut the door and we followed him as he showed us to the guest room, where Raoul used to spend a few of his drunk nights and hung-over mornings.

"And this is your room, Christine." He pushed open the double doors that led to the grand room. The décor of the room had changed into a more elaborate room. It looked as though it belonged in a palace. "Charles- you remember Charles right Christine? -He's brought your luggage in already so you can unpack now if you would like and Erik your room is the door just to the left of this room." He walked away closing the doors tight behind him.

"So this was where you lived all of these years. I wish I could give you this life, Christine. A circus is no place for a queen like you." I grabbed his face and pulled it down to mine. I was suddenly filled with the intense need to touch him and hold him. My fingers fell down to his jacket and I quickly began to pull it off of him. He placed his hands on my cheeks and pulled my face away from his. "What has gotten into you, Christine? Only an hour ago you were ready to rip my face off and now you are ready to rip my clothes off?" I let him ago and step back a few steps. I put my hands on my forehead. I fell back onto the bed and laid there.

"I don't know, Erik. I don't know. I am so sorry for the way I have been treating you." He laid down beside me and pulled me into his chest.

"It's okay, Christine."

"I love you so much, Erik. Perhaps I should go and visit a doctor today and find out what has been wrong with me these past few days." He stroked my hair and I let the tears fall from my eyes and land on his shirt.

"Where is she?!" I heard the pitter patter of feet and then our bedroom doors fell back and hit the walls.

"Oh, Christine! I have missed you so much!" She ran toward the bed and jumped on top of me. Thankfully Erik had moved from the bed just as the doors flew open. I could see him resisting the urge to kill her from the corner of my eye. Meg jumped up from the bed and ran to shut the doors. She ran back and sat beside me on the bed. She grabbed my hands up in hers and leaned in close to me. "Alright, there is something I must say." Her voice was quiet and very serious, even though her words continued to flow out of her at an incredible rate. "I haven't exactly told Raoul what happened on the docks. I knew how much he loved you and I didn't want him to hate me so I didn't tell him the whole truth. He knows we had a fight and I went a little mad, but that is all he knows and I would like to keep it that way. I know that it is a lot to ask for, but I am better now I swear. See?" She stood up and quickly pivoted. "No more madness? So what do you say?" I let the words sink in.

"Meg, that is a night no one wants to remember. It is better left forgotten. I will not say anything. I swear."

"Oh, God bless you Christine!" She pulled me in a hug and I could feel her anxiety melt away. And then she pulled away and slowly turned around. "Erik?" Her voice was normal now, at an average speed and octave.

"Whatever, Christine wants, I will do." Meg jumped up from the bed and threw her arms around Erik. I could feel jealousy seeping through my veins.

"What Christine wants, is for Meg's hands off of her fiancé." Meg's hands pulled away quickly and she turned to face my angry face. She looked frightened and confused.

"Christine? I'm sorry I didn't mean- I didn't know-"

"Oh I am sorry, Meg. My emotions have been all over the place this week. Forgive me."

"Perhaps you're pregnant." She jumped once in the air. "Anyway dinner is in half an hour. I'll let you unpack. See you then." And then she was gone.


	28. And then there were Four?

**Thank you guys so much for reading and supporting my story. But most of all thank you for putting up with my crap. I am so sorry that I haven't been updating lately. But on the bright side I have a lot on my mind about what will be coming up soon so expect a lot. I'm dedicating this chapter to all of my awesome readers out there. I hope you like it. Read & Review. **

"Pregnant? You don't really think?" Erik turned towards me his face was a mix of horror and confusion and anxiety and fear.

"No, of course not. I mean we have only had sex…" I mentally calculated. "No. That doesn't matter. It's just not possible." And even as I said the words my hands fell to my stomach.

"Christine…" Erik's voice was filled with just amount of fear as his face.

"Erik, it's not possible. Just forget about it, okay?" I grabbed my luggage and pulled it into the closet. I finished unpacking when I heard the bell for supper. I walked back out into the room and found Erik sitting down in an armchair with his head buried in his hands. His mask sat in his lap. "Erik's?" He quickly wiped away his tears and placed the mask back on his face. "Are you okay?" He stood from his spot and walked towards me. "I'm not pregnant. I am not!" When he reached me he placed his hands gently on my stomach.

"But what if you are?"

"I am not, Erik!" I stormed out of the room and down the hallway. I walked out the front door and started down the street.

I was becoming unbelievably ridiculous. Why was I so upset about being pregnant? I loved Gustave and I loved Erik. I loved my life and would be blessed to bring another child into our lives. So why was I treating Erik like the black plague now.

Everyone was probably eating supper at the dinner table now and where was I? I was walking down the road to the small home of the medicine woman who had given me the news of Gustave's conception. I had to know. After a few blocks I reached the doors. I ran up the stairs and paused as my hand touched the door's cold metal handle.

"Christine?" I turned to see Erik's troubled face. I fell to my knees on the staircase.

"What's wrong with me, Erik?" He ran to my side and pulled me into his lap.

"Nothing, darling. Nothing, at all. I am sorry that I have put this burden on you." I looked up at him and brushed away the tears.

"Erik you are so blind to your own beauty! I would be blessed to carry another child of yours. I am just- I don't know. I'm scared. I don't know what I am doing. Things change so quickly in my life, I find myself getting lost. What if I can't care for this child? What if I-"

"Stop, Christine. Stop talking. You have given Gustave the best life possible. But even so remember you are not alone." He pulled my face even closer to his. "I am here for you. I will always be by your side. You should know by now, I am not going anywhere." I brushed away my tears and stood up.

"Do you want to go with me? I know you didn't get to the first time."

"Do you want me there?"

"There is nothing I would want more." He stood up and wiped my tears away. He placed his lips against mine and whispered, "There is nothing that will ever stop me from loving you Christine…" And then he kissed me with the most beautiful passion in the world. His lips grazed the skin of my ear and sent goosebumps all over my body. "…Even when you get crazy." He chuckled. I placed my hands on his chest tried to shove him away but he caught my wrists and pulled me back to him so he could kiss me again.

"You two are so sweet. Your young love warms my old heart." I turned to see the old woman I had visited ten years ago. "Oh my goodness. Bless your heart, I remember you. You were that young sweet girl. You looked so lost that day. Well thank the Lord. Look at your rosy cheeks. You look so happy. This must be your young man." She hobbled over to Erik and through her arms around him. Her affection confused him but he quickly returned the hug.

"Yes, madame, he sure is." She looked down at my stomach and her smile widened.

"I see you two are expecting again?" I looked down at my own stomach and then back up the old woman.

"How did you-"

"Oh sweet heart I may be old but I do not lack knowledge. Come inside let me give you a proper checkup." She took each of hands and pulled us down the long hallway. The sun outside was beginning to set. Each room of her house seemed to be much dustier than I remembered. There were jars of herbs on every flat surface. She had not made the switch to electric lighting yet and so the rooms were lights by hundreds of small candles. "I just lost my Henry this fall so I am sorry for the mess. I haven't gotten around to cleaning yet." Old funeral bouquets cluttered the tables.

"Oh. I am so sorry for your loss."

"I'm not. He's in a better place. It will only be a short time until we are together again."

"That is such a pleasant way to think of it. But I cannot say I would take Christine's death as gracefully." He wrapped his arms around my waist and held me close as we made our way to the small medicine room. She helped me up onto the table. Erik held my hand tightly as the woman shift through my many layers of skirting. After a very uncomfortable half hour or so she popped her head back out with a rather large grin.

"You are about two to three months along." I turned and smiled up at Erik. I fixed my skirt and then slid off of the table. The woman washed her hands and then turned toward Erik. "Congratulations." He held me so close and placed his hand gently over my stomach.

"Thank you so much, Madame." Erik grinned back at her and then down at me.

"Thank you." I slipped out of Erik's arms to give the woman a hug. "You gave me the courage I needed the first time I was here. Thank you for everything." The woman was so tiny and warm. I imagined that this was what it was like to have a grandmother. She pulled at a hanky and handed it me.

"Here you go, honey. Please come back to see me, soon. And bring your little boy too."

"How did you know-"

"I've had my share babies. It's become a sixth sense. I could tell you what this one will be, if you'd like." I looked at Erik and we both seemed to answer at the same time.

"No thank you." She smiled at us and walked us to the door. I handed her hanky back but she shook her head.

"Keep it. Perhaps it will remind you to come back and see me."

"I will not need a hanky to remember you. But thank you." She nodded her head. Erik grabbed my hand and we began our walk back to the house.

"Well this has been a long day."

"It sure has, Erik." He pulled me into his coat and held me against his chest. His warmth sent away my shivering and warmed my soul. My hand fell down to my stomach. I felt the smile pull at my lips. Gustave was going to be thrilled.

Meg and Raoul were both sitting in the parlor when we got back.

"An hour and a half. Where have you guys been?! You missed dinner! We were so worried!"

"Well Meg was worried. I knew Erik, would never let anything happen to you." Guilt flooded Meg's face but she quickly covered it with mock happiness.

"Christine, why don't we let the boys bond? I left you a plate of food in the kitchen." I gave Erik a look telling him how sorry I was for leaving him alone with Raoul and then followed Meg out of the room. "So?"

"So what?"

"Don't mess with me Christine. I know you, where were you?"

"Well if you must know, I went to a medicine woman."

"Oh please tell me you didn't take me seriously. I've just had babies on my mind lately. If I tell you something do you swear not to tell anyone?" I looked at her curiously.

"I swear." She grabbed my hand and pulled me into the kitchen's pantry as we passed it.

"Oh my gosh! Well I don't know how to say it! But I should just say it! I am a woman I have nothing to be ashamed of! Well I guess I do…"

"God, Meg! What?!"

"I HAD SEX!" Her voice was so loud that after she said I could hear the kitchen help snickering. She cupped her face in her hand. She sank down to the ground and covered her face.

"You did what?!" She uncovered her face and looked up at me in shame.

"I gave into temptation. Mother was away one night working late at the opera house; she got her job back by the way. It is very nice. She has her own office now."

"Meg focus. Tell me what happened."

"Well mother and I have been living here in the other guest rooms." It was strange that after living here for ten years, I hadn't explored more and found these other rooms I was hearing about. "Oh well they were not guest rooms when you lived here. They were his and his brother's old rooms. Well anyway. I don't know. He was working in his study and it just kind of happened. Mother doesn't know and I have seen a doctor. She said I wasn't pregnant but I'm so scared!"

"That was your first and only time wasn't it?"

"Well it was my first…"

"Meg!"

"I know! I am such a terrible person. She buried her head in her hands. What would mother think of me!?"

"Meg, it is okay. At least he is your fiancé. He is going to be your husband in tomorrow. You mustn't worry. It will be okay."

"Christine, have you ever, yah know?"

"Meg, I was married and I have a child. What do you think?"

"Oh yeah. So Raoul was your first too?"

"Actually no."

"What?!"

"Raoul knows now. My goodness, I have been wanting to tell someone about this for ten years. I actually went looking for you a few days later to tell you. But you were gone."

"Erik, wanted us to leave before your wedding. But, he wouldn't say why. Oh. My. Gosh! CHRISTINE! You didn't!" Meg's voice rose in both volume and octave.

"Shhh. Meg, quiet!"

"I'm sorry. I am just shocked! You of all people, Christine. I just can't imagine."

"Yes Erik and I made love the night before my wedding to Raoul. That was the night we conceived Gustave."

"How was it?" She was so quiet. Her embarrassment level was up pretty high.

"Honestly? It was the most beautiful thing I have ever experienced. God created Erik and me for each other. Everything about that night just felt right." Meg bowed her head. Her voice was muffled by the skirt she buried her head into.

"My first time wasn't like that, Christine. It was embarrassing and awkward. What if marrying Raoul is a mistake? What if we aren't written in the stars like you and Erik?"

"I have seen the way your faces light up when you look at each other. You are not making a mistake, Meg. Trust me." I heard Meg release the breath she was holding in. My stomach let out the loudest grumble possible. The tension in the room broke and we were both laughing. "So where is that plate of food I was promised?" Meg stood and pulled on a string hanging from the ceiling. The small pantry was doused with light. She brushed of her skirt and helped me up. Now didn't seem like the moment to tell her about my little baby, so I without a word I followed her out in to the kitchen. The workers quickly went back their work hoping we didn't realize they were listening to our entire conversation.

"What happens in this kitchen stays in this kitchen. Do you all hear me?" Meg sounded so grown up that it took me off guard. She pulled me to the counter and handed me a plate of food which I happily shoved into my mouth. "Well I expected you to let me heat the food first, but okay." I looked at Meg and we both laughed again. I missed her so much, it was hard to believe. I pulled her into a hug. "I'm so sorry Christine." I could hear her sobbing into my shoulder.

"Meg I don't care about the past. All we have is the future and I want you in mine. You are like a sister to me. I don't want to lose you."

"You see I told you they would be emotional right when we walked in." I turned to see Raoul and Erik standing in the kitchen's archway. I smiled at Erik and let my hands fall to my stomach. Meg wiped away her tears.

"Very funny, Raoul." She ran to his side and placed a kiss on his cheek. Meg had to stand on his tiptoes to reach his cheek. He smiled and looked down at her.

"I love you, Meg." She nestled her head into his chest and he wrapped his arms around her. It was so heartwarming to see Raoul like that again. And to see the bliss on Meg's face let my heart swell.

"Well I suppose it is pretty late. We must all be off to bed." Raoul looked down at Meg and she blushed knowing very well what he was hinting at.

"Perhaps it is. I'll see you at the end of aisle tomorrow, Raoul." She skipped off to her room. He stared off at her confused.

"I suppose I am quite tired. It has been an awfully long and very eventful day."

"No Erik, eat dinner first. We don't need you passing out during the ceremony, that would throw off my poor little Meg's entrance."

"I suppose you are right." Erik took the plate of food that Raoul offered him.

"What do you mean?"

"Well I figure you are the Maid of Honor, Gustave is the ring bearer, we have a musical genius, why not ask him to play for the wedding?"

"Oh that is fantastic, Raoul!"

"Yes, well Meg was quite fond of the idea as well. I am off to bed."

"Raoul, give her a break for tonight. She has a big day ahead of her tomorrow." Raoul blushed.

"You are a bold woman, Christine. Goodnight you two." He nodded and walked away.

"Did you really just bring up such a topic with a Vicomte, Christine?" I grinned up at him.

"I did indeed." Erik placed his hands on my stomach.

"I really hope you grow up to be just like your mother." I pulled his face up to mine and kissed him hard. Erik slipped his half empty plate into the sink and wrapped his arms tighter around my waist. "I think that it is time for bed." He picked me up in his arms and I giggled as he carried me like a bride.

I pulled my lips away from his long enough to whisper my final words, "I've decided where I want to have our wedding."

"Mhmmm?" His murmur was lost in the nape of my neck.

"The Opera Populaire."


	29. Not all Good Things can Stay

The sun was shining through the window leaving my back warm. I was lying on Erik's bare chest. His heart was thumping beneath my ear making a beautiful melody. I let my eyes adjust from their short sleep. It took me a few minutes to remember where I was. I groaned and stretched out my sore muscles.

"Good morning sleeping beauty." I looked up to see Erik's deep brown eyes locked on me. He already had his mask back in its place to my dismay.

"And what a good morning it is." I stretched up and kissed him.

"That it is, Christine." He sighed and wrapped his arms tighter around me. There was a soft knock on the door and then Meg came walking into my room. She was looking down into a pile of papers in her hands not noticing us.

"Good morning, Christine. For some reason you got some mail this morning. Well you better get up we have to start getting ready for-" She looked up from the mail and stopped where she stood. "Oh my- what did I just- I'm just going to go. I'll see you later." She ran out of my room shutting the door tight behind her.

"She should really wait for a response before entering a room after she knocked."

"Well I am sure that when they gave us separate rooms they didn't expect to walk into situations like this."

"I suppose you are right."

"I should go see what she needs."

"Well if you must." We sat up and Erik kissed my neck. I slipped off the bed and walked into my closet. I pulled out my white satin robe and put it on.

"I'll be back in a minute." I kissed his nose and ran out of the room. Meg was waiting outside the doors. "I'm really sorry about that."

"Well thankfully I didn't see anything. No harm no foul."

"So what did you need?" Meg shook her head remembering her purpose.

"Oh you got mail." I looked at her confused but took the envelope she offered. I noticed the handwriting instantly. "Yeah, I thought it was weird too. But we need to start getting ready for the wedding. You are going to love your dress!" I nodded my head only half listening to Meg. I had other things on my mind to worry about. "Meet me in my room when you're ready." She turned and skipped off down the hall. As soon as I was a lone I ripped open the envelope and pulled out the letter. The letter was exactly as it had been for months except this time at the end in foreign cursive letters it said "He will kill him. You must save the ones you love." It was confusing. They were not the same people and they had completely different motives. Who was going to kill who? I folded up the letter and slipped it into my robe. I turned and walked back into my room, carefully composing my expression first.

"Christine!?" Erik's voice was loud and frightening. The pain and anger in his voice echoed off the walls.

"Yes, darling?" Erik came out of my closet holding out one of my hat boxes.

"I thought these had stopped. Please explain to me how long this has been happening!"

"Erik I can explain!"

"Then please do!" He threw the box against the room's far wall and it crashed to the floor. The letters cluttered the floor.

"I didn't want to worry you, darling. They are not as bad as you think. They are probably just a silly prank."

"A silly? Little? Prank?!" His voice got angrier with each word. He was now standing in front of me. "Someone is sending you threats and you are passing them off as jokes?! How am I to protect you and our family when you don't tell me these things, Christine?!" I reached out to touch his face but he pulled back quickly. "Do not touch me right now, Christine! I am very livid and I do not want to hurt you." He walked past me and threw open my door. "How could you keep something like this from me?" His voice was just barely a whisper and then he was gone.

I went to the pile of letters on the floor and quickly began to pick them up. There was suddenly another pair of hands helping me. "He should never talk to you like that, Christine! I know I do not have the right to tell you that, but it is true. No one should be little you in such a way." I turned to see Raoul's worried expression. I pulled the letter out from my robe and put it in the box.

"He never talks to me like that Raoul. But this time he was right. I have been ignorant. There are some things I need to tell him, that I have chosen to hide from him." I could feel the tears fall down my face. "I have been so cruel to him lately and I do not mean to be. I love him more than my own life, Raoul."

"And he loves you more than his own, but that doesn't mean he should treat you so-"

"Raoul, you do not understand."

"Christine, why do you always put up these fronts? Sometimes it is okay to let people in. I am here knocked on the door, Christine. Let me in." I wiped away my tear and handed him one of the letters on the floor.

"I have been getting these letters for about two months now. I didn't tell him I was still getting them. I know he's angry, but he's mostly just scared, Raoul. I can tell. He doesn't know what to do. He doesn't know how to help. And there is nothing he can do." The tears came back.

"Christine, please stop crying. You are safe. You are not alone. I am here for you." Raoul put his arms around and squeezed my shoulders.

"I just came to tell you that I needed to take a walk and get some air." I turned to see Erik standing behind us. He clearly wasn't happy with what he saw before him. Raoul let his hands fall to his side.

"I think I'll just go."

"Yes, I think that might be best." Erik couldn't help the scowl on his face.

"Erik!"

"Forgive me for interrupting you two, Christine!" Raoul quickly ran out of the room.

"Erik it wasn't like that!" My crying was turning into heavy sobbing.

"Christine, I can't deal with this right now. I feel like my head is on fire!" He turned and walked out of the door. I ran after him trying to keep up with his long strides.

"Talk to me, Erik! I am sorry!" He turned and looked at my tear stained face.

"I think I need some time to think, Christine." And with that he stormed out of the house. I turned to see Gustave standing in the parlor. His face was full of horror.

"I am sorry, Gustave, that you had to see that. It is not as bad as it seems I promise." I walked toward him to take him into my arms but he stepped away from me.

"I will not lose another father!" He ran from the parlor and into the backyard. I fell to the floor and let my tears flow freely.

"I am sorry Christine. I will go talk to him for you." I heard Meg's voice and her feet as she ran after Gustave but I didn't dare try to respond to her. I rose from my spot on the floor and walked slowly back to my room. I got dressed in the first gown that I saw and left the house. I had to find Erik. I knew Gustave was in good hands. I also knew that he had his father's temper. There was no way he was going to talk to or even listen to me until I gave him time to cool down. I stuffed the letter into my corset and walked out into the cold air. I did not know where Erik had gone but I had a pretty good idea. I let my feet tell me where to go. The Opera Populaire was crowded with buggies as the rich were arriving to find their seats. It had been awhile sense I saw it so alive again. I slipped through the shadows and found the back entrance that would take me to the third cellar. I knew my way around down there and I could easily find my way to where Erik had always hid.

I had crossed Lake Averne in no time and was walking up the stone path to where Erik's piano sat. I rounded the corner to Erik's old room. "Go away, Christine." Erik was just where I thought he would be. He was hunched over sitting on his bed. His mask was lying in his lap and he repeated traced his fingers over is smooth white surface.

"I think we both know that I can't."

"You should be getting ready for the wedding."

"Do you really believe that I could? I am so sorry for everything that I have done, Erik." The tears spilled over despite my protest. Erik looked up at me.

"You have done nothing wrong. I just do not know what to do. I feel like I am losing you, Christine." Tears began to slip down his cheeks.

"Lose me? How could you ever lose me? I am yours forever, Erik. It's you and me until the end of time."

"I cannot compete with Raoul and I can't go through the pain of losing you and Gustave again."

"You won't Erik."

"How can I be so sure? The way he touches you, Christine? And the way he looks at you? He will always love you."

"Erik, you are being absurd. He is marrying Meg today. What Raoul and I had was a mental thing. We both thought that we loved one another. We believed we were meant to be sense we were children. But Erik, what I feel for you. Those emotions take control of my whole body. I cannot be without you without being without half of myself. I love you so much Erik that my heart feels like it is going to explode."

"Christine-"

"And the letters, I do not think they are a joke. But I do know that whatever this person is planning it won't work. There is no way I can ever be hurt with you beside me." I pulled the folded up envelope out from my corset. "Besides I think there is someone out there that is on our side." I put the letter in his hand and let him read the words at the bottom of it. Once he finished I took the letter back and slipped it into the envelope.

"Christine, wait. There is something in that envelope." He took it from my hands and pulled out a small hair pin. I heard his breath catch as he studied the small design on it. "It can't be."

"Erik, What is it?" He held the pin up to me.

"This was my mother's."

**Thanks to those who have been following my story sense the beginning and thank you for your reviews. They inspire me to keep writing. I hated writing this chapter, not going to lie. I want them to be the perfect relationship. But sometimes you have to let the characters do what they do instead of turning them into who you want them to be, especially with fanfiction when you are writing of already existing characters. But I have been getting into showing more of Erik's dark side. I believe that he isn't going to be this giant pile of fluff all of the time. (even though we all love his sweet side) He is still going to have his angry moments where he breaks thinks and pulls out the Punjab. Alright well I hope you liked it. Remember to read & review. Let me know if you have any ideas who the mystery people are or why Erik's mother's hair pin was with the letter.**


	30. A day to Remember

Erik was running through the dark alleyways finding the quickest route back to the Vicomte's home. We were due to leave in about an hour and a half. His hand held tightly onto mine. It was the only thing keeping me from falling over. I couldn't see where I was going or what I was stumbling over because my mind was elsewhere. Why did that person have Erik's mother's hairpin? Why was it sent? What did it mean? Perhaps it was only a trick, a trick to gain Erik's trust, only to blindside him later.

I was suddenly engulfed in the bright sun. My eyes adjusted to the light and my mind focused on the grand chaotic house in front of us. Erik pulled me up the stairs and through the halls. He opened a door and scooted me inside, closing it quickly and disappearing behind it. Why did he just leave me? "Oh, Christine, I was wondering when you would be back! We only have a half an hour for you to get dressed." I let myself sink into my surroundings. Meg was already pulling my dress from her closet and tossing it onto her bed.

"I'm sorry, Meg. Things have just gotten a lot more complicated."

"You'll say." She started to unbutton the back my skirt and pull it off. "We must hurry if we want you presentable." I let myself fall into the motions of being the maid of honor. I quickly got dressed and pinned my hair up. My dress was a soft blue that cascaded down my body like a waterfall of fabric. It was beautiful, and yet in comparison to Meg it was nothing but a sack. Meg's gown was a beautiful creamy white gown. It touched her curves perfectly and displayed her ballerina grace. The bodice was corseted down her back and the bottom proofed out in a proper tutu fashion. She fit the description of a ballerina bride. She pulled her hair up in a tight bun out of instinct. I pulled down a few of her small waves to soften her face. I helped her put on her grandmother blue locket and handed her bouquet.

"You look so beautiful, Meg." I could feel the tears threatening to spill.

"I am so happy, Christine. Everything is finally going perfect for me." She pulled me into an embrace. "Thank you, Christine. I don't know what I would have done without you all these years." We were both crying now. There was a soft knock at the door. We let go of each other and wiped away the tears. "Come in." Erik's head popped in from behind the door.

"Are you ready to go ladies? Raoul has just left for the church and your carriage now awaits you." Meg took a deep breath and pulled up the hoop of her dress.

"Here we go." She walked out of the room past Erik.

"Where's Gustave?" I looked him in the eyes and yet he showed no signs of stress. It was as if the events from earlier had never happened.

"Well after sometime of arguing with me, he left with Raoul. He wanted to stay and go with you. But he did ask that I apologize for his cruel words towards you." He took my chin in his hands and lifted my face to his. "Are you alright?"

"Yes. Are you?"

"I do not wish to let such fowl things ruin this day for our friends." He turned on his heel and strode out to the waiting carriage. He helped me up into the carriage and then got inside behind me. Once beside me I grabbed his hand and held it tight. Everything seemed to blurring past me in a dizzy haze of colors. He squeezed my hand and brought me back to clarity. We quickly arrived to the church. Erik snuck out of the back of the carriage while the driver helped me and Meg out of the carriage. The large crowd of people and cameras would be too curious about the masked man. People looked on excitedly, hoping to catch that first glance at Meg's dress. Raoul was not too famous but his money made a lot of people want to be his friends. Interviewers pushed through the crowds trying to get my opinion on being the maid of honor for my ex-husband's wedding. I ignored their questions and pushed through the crowd.

As we entered the church and the doors closed behind us we were engulfed in silence. There was a soft melody floating through the air. "Well there is no time like the present. After you, Christine." I gathered myself together and used my acting skills to plaster on a smile. I opened the doors and began my walk down the aisle. Erik sat at the piano. His fingers slid skillfully across the ivories. He turned his head around and met my gaze. He gave me a brilliant smile before he turned around back to his work. I reached the end of the aisle and turned to see my boy dressed in an elegant tuxedo. He was carefully balancing the rings on a small cream pillow hoping not to drop them. His feet moved perfectly in time with the music. He reached the end and stood behind Raoul. He looked up at me with sorrowful eyes.

The music shifted to the traditional wedding march. Everyone stood and their eyes fell to the back of the church. The double doors opened wide and exposed Meg I looked at Raoul and saw his tear-filled eyes. He was so happy, Meg was blushing but she kept her eyes locked on Raoul. Meg's arm was linked around her mother's and they stayed with the pace of the music, despite Meg's urgency to get to Raoul. When they reached the end of the aisle Madame Giry happily handed her daughter away to Raoul and the ceremony began. I could see Gustave getting sleepy but he stood tall and proud as he guarded the rings with his life. When it was time for him to hand them over, he did so with pride. He looked so much like his father.

I turned to Erik as Meg and Raoul recited their vows. He wiped away a single tear that fell down his cheek. He tore his eyes from them and looked at me. His eyes were full of so much love that it stole my breath away. After the wedding ended and The De Chagnys had finished thanking those who had attended we escaped out of the back of the church before we could be attacked by the news reporters. I squeezed Meg's hand in mine. "The ceremony was beautiful, Meg." She turned toward me I could see the tears in her eyes.

"Thank you Christine. It means so much to me that you came."

"I wouldn't have missed it for the world." Raoul carefully helped her into the carriage that would take them to the docks where they would sail away to their honeymoon destination. Raoul had kept it hid for months now. Only he knew where they would be going. But it was decided they would be back in week for my and Erik's wedding. For the meantime we would be staying at their home with Madame Giry, awaiting their return.

Gustave grabbed my hand and held it tightly in his small one. "I am so sorry my dreadful words, Mama."

"I am sorry you had to see such an awful sight, darling."

"I know that things with Raoul did not work out because you did not love him like, Father. But I know you tolerated him for me. I should not have yelled at you in such a way. I am sorry." His intelligence was astounding.

"Darling!" I pulled him into my arms and held him tight against my chest. Our hearts were beating in sync.

"Gustave?"

"Yes, Father?" Gustave stepped back and looked up at Erik.

"Would you like to see where your mother and I met?" Gustave's smile grew wide.

"Raoul, never let me go any of the opera houses in France. I would love to Father!" Erik patted his head.

"I assumed so." A small black carriage pulled up in front of us and Erik helped Gustave in. Suddenly three familiar heads popped out of the carriage's door.

"Fleck? Gangle? Squelch? What are you all doing here?" I looked up at Erik confused.

"I thought they should be our wedding. They left soon after we did." Erik wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me close.

"Thank you, Erik." He kissed my cheek gently and then helped me up into the carriage.


	31. The Opera Populaire

Erik took Gustave on a tour of the Opera house below sea level leaving me free to explore this foreign world. The Opera Populaire had been rebuilt to an expect replication of my old home. But the people were all new. Monsieur Firmin and Monsieur Andre had moved to Italy where the junk business was at its highest. After the fire most of the stage hands moved to other theatres. A few ballerinas stayed behind. I could hear their whispered fears when they saw me. But I continued walking. I knew where I was going. I rounded the corner and found the old chapel. It was untouched by the fire and therefore never needed remodeling. I sat on the ground before the candles and lit my father's. His picture still sat there among the other lost loved ones. I said a prayer for him and then blew out the candle and pulled his picture from the frame that sat above his candle. I carefully place his photo in the bodice of my gown. I rose from the ground and went looking for my old dressing room.

I gave the door light knock and then slipped inside. Everything was exactly as I remembered. The wallpaper contained the same pattern. The rug was as fluffy as I remembered. Each breath I took was full of flowery smells of freesia, lilac, and roses. My curiosity got the best of me and I found myself walking to the full length mirror hanging on the wall. My fingers gently touched the cold glass and began to slide it from its usual place. It groaned in a dark manner. But what was behind the mirror was solid. I pushed the mirror completely and stared in horror. Erik's old passageway to my dressing room had been closed up brick by brick.

"What are you a doing in my room?!" I quickly shut the door before they could see what I was up to. I turned and saw the single person I had been dreading since I had arrived in France. Standing before me was the Opera Populaire's very own prima donna diva, Carlotta Giudicelli. She was adorned in beautiful custom costume for the Opera's newest show, _Faust_. When she saw my face I saw her freeze in fear. I took a step toward her and she took one away from me. "What are you doing here?! You need to leave!" Tears fell from her cheeks sending black river of makeup across her face.

"Carlotta, I'm sorry! I didn't mean for you to get hurt!"

"I did not get hurt! You know who get hurt? Piangi! He is dead! He is in ground! And it is your fault!" She slapped my cheek with every bit of anger she had been storing within her for nineteen years. I stumbled back and fell to the floor. I instinctively grabbed my cheek. I winced at the pain that coursed through my body. I could taste the salty blood that fell from my ripped lip. Carlotta fell into a chair and began to cry.

"I'm sorry, Carlotta. It was not my intention. I did not want anyone to get hurt!" She wiped at her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Well it seems your childhood sweetheart has married another and replaced you. Perhaps you shall get what you rightfully deserve!"

"I'm so sorry!"

"No you are not! It wasn't enough that you have to steal my roles, no you have to kill my happiness and steal my love. You sick monster!"

"I did not steal your roles! And I was surely not the person who killed Piangi! You have always hated me for so long and I have never done anything to you!"

"You do not understand, little girl. You have never been replaced by the younger model."

"I never wanted to replace you, Carlotta. I used to look up to you. You are so beautiful and talented. As a child you were who I wanted to be."

"Well congratulations you succeeded." I rose from the floor and walked to the door. "I do understand that you did not kill him. But he did die because of you and I will never forgive you for that."

"Well, perhaps it is not your forgiveness that I came looking for." I turned the knob and left. I was sitting on the sidewalk with my head resting in my hands when Erik and Gustave found me.

"Mother you will not believe everything I saw! Here, Papa brought this back for you." I looked up to see that Gustave had place a music box in the shape of a barrel organ with an attached figured of a monkey dressed in Persian robes, playing the cymbals, still in working order, in my lap. My wound it up and the monkey played the same haunting melody from those many nights ago.

"It's lovely darling. But I think it is time to be heading home." Gustave was quick to display his disappointment.

I sat staring at my reflection in the mirror. My mascara had run down my face and left black smears across my cheeks. My pulled out the last pin and watched my long brown curls cascade around my shoulders. I wiped at my eyes one last time and tried to smile back at the pitiful creature in the mirror. Once we got home I tucked Gustave into bed as Erik showed our friends where their rooms would be. After Gustave was tucked safely in bed, I locked myself in the bathroom and let my fear and anxieties rush over me. I didn't fight the tears anymore.

I turned on the sink and splash water in my face. I calmed my shaking body and wiped the mess of makeup from my face with a warm, wet towel. I let myself fall gently to the ground. The cold tiles chilled my legs and soothed away my headache. My hand slipped against a towel sending it to the floor. A small white envelope slipped out of it. The hair on the back of my neck rose as I pulled the paper out.

I hope you are enjoying your room. I know that I will. I am going to miss you so much! I love you, Christine. You and Erik have been so kind to me. I wish there was some way to repay you. Thank you so much for always being there for me.

With Love,

Vicomtess Meg De Chagny

My muscles relaxed and I let out the breath I had been holding. Why did I always have to be afraid of what was going to be around the next corner? There was a soft knock on the door.

"Christine?" I got up from my spot on the floor and unlocked the door. Erik had his arms around me in a second. "Are you alright, Christine? I was afraid of asking you earlier. I did not want to upset Gustave. What happened?"

"I ran into Carlotta today." I felt him relax instantly.

"Oh? What happened?"

"She blames me for Piangi's death. She hates me Erik." I felt the hot sting of tears.

"I am sorry, my love. I had lost all sanity back then. I did not mean for anyone to-" I looked up into his regretful eyes.

"I know Erik." He held me tight against his body. His heart pounded hard against his chest. It echoed in my ears and bounced around in my head. He rested his head against mine.

"I love you my Christine." I could feel the change as my heart set pace to his.

"I love you too Erik."

"I forgot to tell you how beautiful you looked today, Christine."

"How could you even call me beautiful after you saw Meg?"

"Easily." I smiled up at him and he met my lips with his. I wrapped my hands around his neck pulling his face closer to mine. I need him. I need the feel of him. I needed the scent of him. His fingers wrapped themselves in my curls. My hands slipped down his neck and into his jacket. They slipped beneath the fabric of his jacket. He untangled his hands from my hair and let the jacket slip off his arms. His hands found my cheeks and pulled my face even closer to his. My kisses became even more aggressive. I bit his lip and I could taste the blood. I pulled back from him, embarrassed.

"Oh, Erik! I am so sorry!" His arms wrapped around my waist and pulled me back towards him.

"Don't worry about it, Christine. It is not my safety I am worrying about right now." My lips feverishly found his once more.


End file.
